Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya met with the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Slovenia, Tanja Fajon. Slovenia has won the non-permanent UN Security Council seat against the Lukashenka regime. Slovenia will represent the Eastern European Group, including Belarus, in the UN starting in 2024. During the meeting, Ms. Fajon and Ms. Tsikhanouskaya discussed joint activities in the UN during the General Assembly and Slovenia's mandate in the Security Council.
The discussion also emphasized political prisoners and a rehabilitation program for the families of political prisoners and those who have already been released from detention. Similar programs have already been launched in Italy, Norway, and Spain. Given the scale of repression, the democratic forces are working to get other countries to join this initiative.
Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya also talked about the Interpol issue. She noted that Slovenia should not extradite Belarusians at the request of Minsk, as the regime uses Interpol to persecute political opponents. In 2022, at the request of Belarus, Slovenia detained a Belarusian citizen who was later released.
The parties also discussed the problems faced by Belarusians in Slovenia — difficulties in opening bank accounts and legalizing their status. Ms. Tsikhanouskaya mentioned that Slovenia has a People's Embassy of Belarus, headed by Aliaksandra Mamayeva. Minister Fajon and the Belarusian leader agreed to continue contacts to work together towards solving the problems of Belarusians in Slovenia.
