Politically imprisoned artist Ales Pushkin was reported to have died on July 11. Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya commented: “Ales was imprisoned for his work, which embodied the Belarusian people's indomitable spirit. He dreamed of a free and democratic Belarus. And now we must continue Ales' work together and make his dream come true”.
BELARUS-USA. On July 12, Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya met with U.S. President Joe Biden. “I am grateful to the President for this meeting. I conveyed our position and told him that Belarusians continue their struggle for a free country. It is remarkable that in nonpublic discussions we can talk about what truly matters to us. Belarusians can count on the support of the United States”, she commented on the meeting.
NATO SUMMIT. On July 12, Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya took part in a meeting of women leaders within the main program of the NATO summit. This was the first time in history a Belarusian politician participated in NATO events. On the margins of the summit, Ms. Tsikhanouskaya held talks with the Foreign Minister of Belgium and Foreign Minister of Luxembourg. The Belarusian leader also received in her Office the Foreign Minister of Portugal, the Foreign Minister of Iceland, and a delegation of US senators.
SIDE EVENTS ON BELARUS. On July 11 and 12, during the NATO Summit in Vilnius, Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya held two side events on Belarus. The first side event focused on the sovereignty of Belarus and transatlantic security and featured the Foreign Ministers of Iceland and Portugal, the Vice Foreign Minister of Latvia, and the State Secretary of Finland. The second event discussed the placement of nuclear weapons in Belarus and its consequences for regional security and was attended by the US Deputy Secretary, senior director of the Atlantic Council's Eurasia Center Ambassador, and Chairman of Munich Security Conference Ambassador. Representatives of the United Transitional Cabinet, as well as international politicians, diplomats, experts, and media also took part in the side events.
NEW CHARGES AGAINST ZMITSER DASHKEVICH. Kristina Rikhter, Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya’s Advisor on Legal Affairs, commented on the new criminal case against Zmitser Dashkevich: “He never left the prison because someone, from their comfortable office, decided to separate him from his wife and children for several more years. Some people from some offices destroy our lives and steal the time that we could spend with our loved ones. And they naively believe we will never know their names. We will.”
VISIT TO BIAŁYSTOK. On July 14-15, Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya and representatives of the United Transitional Cabinet, Pavel Latushka and Alina Koushyk, visited Poland. They met with the Marshal and Voivode of Podlasie Voivodeship, as well as the Mayor of Białystok. On July 14, they attended the inauguration of the Free Belarus Square in Białystok. Protest rallies against the dictator and his regime’s actions have been held in that very place since 2020. The following day, July 15, Ms. Tsikhanouskaya and Mr. Latushka traveled to the village where Kastus Kalinowski was born, visited a Belarusian-language school and a comprehensive lyceum with Belarusian-language instruction in Bielsk Podlaski, and laid flowers at the cross in memory of the people of Zaleshany killed in a 1946 paramilitary armed attack.
LAW ON CITIZENSHIP. On July 11, the updated law “On Citizenship” came into force in Belarus, allowing the regime to revoke citizenship from its opponents. Kristina Rikhter, Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya’s Advisor on Legal Affairs, made a guide for Belarusians on the procedures established by the regime’s new law.
OSCE PA RESOLUTION. The 30th annual session of the OSCE PA adopted its final declaration, as well as a number of resolutions on Belarus. Belarus set a kind of record in the OSCE by being mentioned 64 times in the final declaration. The OSCE Parliamentary Assembly took notice of the “soft annexation” of Belarus by Russia and made a number of other significant statements. Read more.
EDUCATION IN BELARUS. On September 28-30, Vilnius will host the conference “The Decolonization of Education and Research in Belarus and Ukraine: Theoretical challenges and practical tasks”. The conference was initiated by Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya’s Advisor on Education and Science, Professor Tatiana Shchyttsova of the European Humanities University. To participate in the conference, fill in the online form by July 15.
OFFICE VOLUNTEERS. On July 13, Office volunteers held a call with Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya and Franak Viacorka. Ms. Tsikhanouskaya and Mr. Viacorka spoke on the NATO Summit consequences for Belarus and the democratic forces’ efforts to enhance Belarus’ national security.
CONVERSATIONS WITH BELARUSIANS. On Thursday, July 13, Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya held her weekly personal conversations with Belarusians. She and her team discussed issues faced by people in different towns and cities in Belarus and abroad.
VISIT TO ITALY. On July 5-7, Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya and the team of her Office paid a working visit to Rome. Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya spoke on the results of the visit for Belarusians in a video.
MEDIA. Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya was interviewed by BelSAT (Belarus), Masha Efrosinina (Ukraine), Corriere della Sera (Italy), RAI TG1 (Italy), RaiNews (Italy), Il Foglio (Italy), Sky TV (Italy), Avvenire (Italy), LA7 TG (Italy), Radio Radicale (Italy), News Agency La Nova (Italy), La Vanguardia (Italy), Formiche (Italy).
