On March 9, a bilateral meeting took place in Rome between Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya and the President of Italy, Sergio Mattarella, who officially received her at the Quirinal Palace, the historic residence of the Italian head of state.
Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya, as the Head of the United Transitional Cabinet, thanked President Mattarella and the Italian people for their consistent support for the Belarusian people and democratic forces. She noted that cooperation between Italy and Belarus’ democratic forces is currently at a high level and is developing at the governmental, parliamentary, and municipal levels.
President Mattarella and Ms. Tsikhanouskaya discussed the situation inside Belarus, where politically motivated detentions and repression continue, including against religious believers. Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya called for strengthening the European perspective for the Belarusian people and resisting the Russification and militarization of Belarus.
She also informed President Mattarella about cooperation on the humanitarian track with the administration of United States President Donald Trump. Ms. Tsikhanouskaya stressed that the democratic forces have built an infrastructure to receive released political prisoners and provide assistance to those affected by repression.
She highlighted the need for educational, cultural, and academic programs to maintain the mobility of Belarusians, as well as support for Belarusian youth and society. The Belarusian leader urged more opportunities for Belarusian students, researchers, and young professionals to participate in European and Italian programs, educational exchanges, and scholarship initiatives.
Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya spoke about the strategy of the democratic forces, including the initiative of a roundtable dialogue that would involve representatives of different political forces and civil society organizations. The goal would be to ensure a peaceful transfer of power, provided that repression ends, political prisoners are released, persecution for political views stops, and security guarantees are provided to participants. She emphasized that Italy could play an important role in facilitating such dialogue in the future.
