During the Warsaw Security Forum, Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya met with the President of the NATO Parliamentary Assembly and Vice-President of the Portuguese Parliament, Marcos Perestrello. The Secretary General of the NATO Parliamentary Assembly, Benedetta Berti, also attended the meeting.
The parties discussed:
- the security situation in Belarus and the region, the militarization of Belarus, and threats emanating from its territory;
- the release of political prisoners in Belarus;
- further cooperation between Belarus’s democratic forces and the NATO Parliamentary Assembly;
- pressure on Belarus’s defense industry and enterprises supporting Russia’s aggression against Ukraine.
Ms. Tsikhanouskaya spoke about the cooperation already established with the OSCE Parliamentary Assembly, the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe, and the Nordic Council. She expressed interest in further cooperation with the NATO Parliamentary Assembly, which she has addressed twice before.
Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya presented Marcos Perestrello with the BELPOL report on the militarization of Belarus.
Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya: “For long-term security in the region, Belarus needs systemic democratic change. Our country must stop being a source of threats to Ukraine, our neighbors, and NATO member states.
We must maintain and strengthen sanctions against Belarus’s defense industry and enterprises that help Russia wage its war against Ukraine. At the same time, we must remember that many Belarusians oppose the war, support Ukraine, and face repression for doing so. It is essential to distinguish the Belarusian people from the Lukashenka regime and support those fighting for a free and democratic Belarus”.
