Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya is the National Leader of Belarus and Head of the United Transitional Cabinet. Independent observers widely agree that she won the Belarusian presidential election on August 9, 2020, defeating the long-standing dictator Aliaksandr Lukashenka.
After Russia’s invasion of Ukraine on February 24, 2022, Ms. Tsikhanouskaya reshaped the Belarusian pro-democracy movement by establishing and leading the United Transitional Cabinet as its decision-making center. Under her leadership, Belarusian anti-war activists engaged in underground resistance within Belarus, including sabotaging railway transportation to disrupt Russian troop movements. Additionally, Belarusian-staffed volunteer units joined the fight for Ukraine.
As the leader of Belarus’ democratic movement, Ms. Tsikhanouskaya has been conducting official visits to other states and international organizations, building international support and advocating for the release of political prisoners in Belarus, as well as for a peaceful transition of power through free and fair elections. In her meetings with President Joe Biden, Chancellor Angela Merkel, President Emmanuel Macron, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, European Council President Charles Michel, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, and other world leaders, Ms. Tsikhanouskaya has consistently called for a stronger global response to Lukashenka’s dictatorship.
Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya’s journey began when she entered the presidential race after the arrest of her husband, Siarhei Tsikhanouski, who had declared his own presidential aspirations. Lukashenka dismissed her as a “housewife”, declaring that a woman could not be president. Despite this, Ms. Tsikhanouskaya united and led a powerful democratic coalition. Forced into exile after the election, she inspired unprecedented peaceful protests in Belarus, with rallies that sometimes attracted hundreds of thousands of participants. When the war in Ukraine began, Ms. Tsikhanouskaya launched an anti-war movement to prevent Belarus’ involvement, which sparked mass acts of disobedience and numerous acts of sabotage aimed at halting Russian troop movements through Belarusian territory.
Since 2020, Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya has become a symbol of peaceful resistance and strong female leadership. She is the recipient of numerous awards, including the Sakharov Prize from the European Parliament, the 2022 International Four Freedoms Award, and the Charlemagne Prize. In 2021 and 2022, she was nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize by Lithuanian President Gitanas Nausėda and members of the Norwegian Parliament, respectively. Ms. Tsikhanouskaya has also been recognized in Bloomberg’s Top 50 Most Influential People, the Financial Times’ Top 12 Most Influential Women, and Politico’s Top 28 Most Influential Europeans.
