On September 11, a meeting took place in Vilnius between Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya and the ambassadors and special envoys of the Nordic and Baltic countries (NB8). The meeting was organized at the initiative of the Finnish Embassy.
Participants included:
- Jaana Tekenberg, Finland;
- Grete Sillasen, Denmark;
- Patrik Svensson, Sweden;
- Harald Aspelund, Iceland;
- Gunta Pastore, Latvia;
- Asta Andrijauskienė, Lithuania;
- Karmen Laus, Estonia;
- Ella Virtanen, Embassy of Finland;
- Kristin Ferm, Sweden, Desk Officer for Belarus.
Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya welcomed the diplomats and thanked them for their principled stance and consistent support of democratic Belarus.
The discussions addressed:
- Political prisoners and post-release support. Ms. Tsikhanouskaya stressed that the democratic forces and human rights defenders already have infrastructure in place to receive released prisoners (shelters, legal aid, volunteer networks), but resources for housing, food, and urgent medical care are lacking. Therefore, international support, including through the International Humanitarian Fund, is essential.
- Continuing repression. Despite the recent releases, more than 30 people have been recognized as political prisoners in just the past few weeks. “We must welcome releases but not stop applying pressure until systemic changes take place in Belarus”, Ms. Tsikhanouskaya emphasized.
- Sanctions and regional security. Discussions touched upon the Zapad-2025 exercise, the threat of hybrid attacks from Belarusian territory (drone incidents, the migration crisis, cyberattacks). Ms. Tsikhanouskaya stressed that Belarusian society opposes the war and that democratic Belarus will be a reliable part of the European security system.
- Support for independent media, cultural, and civic initiatives. Special attention was given to Nordic programs and the opportunities for Belarusian NGOs to participate in European initiatives.
- Accountability of the regime. Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya noted Lithuania’s efforts to bring the Lukashenka regime to international justice and called on all Nordic countries to join these initiatives.
