The EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, Kaja Kallas, received Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya at the headquarters of the European External Action Service (EEAS) in Brussels.
As the Head of the United Transitional Cabinet of Belarus, Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya thanked Kaja Kallas and the EEAS for their principled and consistent support for Belarus, the country’s democratic forces, and civil society. She presented Ms. Kallas with several documents on the regional security situation and briefed her on the work of Belarus’s civil society in countering Russian disinformation during elections in Armenia and Moldova.
The parties discussed Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya’s recent visit to Ukraine. The Belarusian leader highlighted the opening of the Mission of Democratic Belarus in Kyiv, Ukraine’s appointment of a Special Envoy for Cooperation with the Democratic Forces of Belarus, and the launch of a joint coordination group. They also discussed Ukraine’s support for international accountability mechanisms for crimes committed by the Lukashenka regime, as well as information and political cooperation.
Particular attention was given to contacts with the United States and efforts to secure the release of political prisoners. Ms. Tsikhanouskaya called for maintaining the humanitarian track for prisoner releases without granting political legitimacy to the regime.
The sides also discussed sanctions policy. Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya called for closing loopholes in the sanctions regime and noted that any easing of restrictions should be possible only after irreversible changes in the regime’s policies. Despite the recent releases of political prisoners, repression has not decreased; on the contrary, persecution continues and is taking new forms.
Another topic was national dialogue and the possibility of a roundtable as one of the tools for a peaceful resolution of the crisis. Ms. Tsikhanouskaya emphasized that the first steps must be the release of all political prisoners, a full amnesty, and an end to repression.
She also called for continued support for Belarusian independent media, which help maintain connections with Belarusians inside the country, as well as for human rights defenders, repressed individuals, cultural figures, and democratic institutions. She further urged greater mobility opportunities for Belarusians and the continued issuance of Schengen visas to Belarusian citizens.
