During the AI Action Summit in Paris, held under the patronage of the President of France, Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya conducted a series of high-level political meetings. On February 11, she met with the President of the French National Assembly, Yaël Braun-Pivet, as well as members of the French Parliament and the Group for a Democratic Belarus.
The main topic of discussion was the release of Belarusian political prisoners. Tsikhanouskaya emphasized that efforts are being made on both humanitarian and political tracks, but stronger international coordination is necessary to force the Lukashenka regime to release detainees and stop repression.
Key outcomes of the meetings:
✅ Agreement to expand the Group of Friendship with Democratic Belarus—an official parliamentary group chaired by Frédéric Petit.
✅ Plans to organize the Kalinowski Forum in the French Parliament in the second half of 2025.
✅ Discussion on legalization issues for Belarusians in France, including the issuance of travel documents and the status of the New Belarus passport.
✅ Tsikhanouskaya proposed the official use of the term “Bélarus” instead of “Biélorussie” in French government documents—currently, both names coexist.
✅ Call for French MPs to take honorary patronage over political prisoners and join the Day of Solidarity with Belarus on March 25.
French MPs also expressed their willingness to visit Warsaw and Vilnius to meet with former political prisoners and families of the repressed.
At the meeting, Frédéric Petit officially handed over the final report on the international observation of the Coordination Council elections, which took place last year.
At the end of her visit, Tsikhanouskaya signed the guest book as honorary guest, leaving a message:
“Pour notre liberté et la vôtre!
Merci pour votre soutien!
Vive la France, vive le Bélarus!”
