BELARUS-LITHUANIA. On August 23, Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya met with the Lithuanian Seimas Speaker, Viktorija Čmilytė-Nielsen. During the meeting, they discussed the potential law that may bring restrictions against Belarusians in sync with those against Russians. The Belarusian leader called on Lithuania to maintain a different approach to Belarusians and Russians while equalizing sanctions against the Lukashenka and Putin regimes. “I am aware that the situation is changing, making the Lukashenka regime an increasingly greater threat to all of Belarus’ neighbors, but we need to look for solutions that minimize harm to Belarusians,” Ms. Tsikhanouskaya emphasized.
DAY OF DECLARATION OF INDEPENDENCE OF BELARUS. On August 25, the day the Declaration of Sovereignty of the Republic was given constitutional status in 1991, Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya addressed the Belarusian people: “Today we have to fight for our independence again. Because now it is under the greatest threat in all recent history”. Ms. Tsikhanouskaya called on Belarusians to remember what true independence means.
UKRAINE'S INDEPENDENCE DAY. On August 24, Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya addressed the Ukrainian people on the occasion of Ukraine's Independence Day: “We bow our heads to your courage and persistence. Your fight for freedom inspires the whole world. I am proud to see Belarusians helping you in this fight”. The Belarusian leader expressed hope that Belarusians and Ukrainians will restore good relations, and that the people who dragged Belarus into the war will be held accountable. Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya wished Ukrainians to celebrate the next Independence Day in a peaceful and free country.
SOLIDARITY WITH POLITICAL PRISONERS. On August 22, on the birthday of political prisoner Pavel Belavus, Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya expressed words of support for him and called on Belarusians to continue his cause: “Pavel Belavus did everything so that we could emphasize our national identity in defiance of pro-Russian politics. So let us continue his work together – speak Belarusian, support content in our native language, and adorn ourselves in clothes that show our national identity. Value ourselves and what is ours”.
BELARUS-UKRAINE. Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya's Advisor for the Constitutional Reform and Interparliamentary Cooperation, Anatoli Liabedzka, visited Kyiv and accompanied a medical convoy for the Kastus Kalinouski Regiment. During his working visit to Ukraine, he met with the head of the parliamentary group “For Democratic Belarus” in the Verkhovna Rada, Vadym Halaichuk, held a series of consultations with Ukrainian MPs, as well as met with the Batkivshchyna faction deputy head, Serhiy Sobolyev. In addition, he met with the Belarusian diaspora in Lviv.
YOUTH POLICY. During the New Belarus Conference 2023, Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya appointed Marharyta Vorykhava as her Advisor on Youth Policy and Students. Marharyta is the President of the RADA Youth Council and a representative of Belarus in the Contact Group of the Council of Europe and the Consultative Group with the European Union. Ms. Vorykhava released an address outlining the key fields of her work and sharing her plans: “In my position, I hope to unite youth initiatives and organizations, activists, and students, and build a cohesive solidarity community”.
OFFICE VOLUNTEERS. Two major interviews were published on the volunteers' Telegram channel. Historian Yauhen Krasulin spoke about the transition from dictatorship to democracy and the ways that history offers for the struggle for freedom. Hanna Liubakova, a journalist and researcher at the Atlantic Council, told the volunteers about promoting the Belarusian agenda in international media and providing expertise on Belarus.
