“I Hope There Will Be Good News This Month”: Tsikhanouskaya on Coale’s Visit to Minsk

Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya, speaking at the 5th Conference of Belarusians Worldwide in Warsaw, outlined expectations for the upcoming visit of US presidential envoy John Coale to Minsk, which he said could take place in two to three weeks.

According to her, the Office will be informed in advance about the visit and the number of political prisoners expected to be transferred abroad.

“I cannot, of course, disclose everything, because this process is quite closed and complex. We will be notified in advance when it happens and approximately how many people there will be, because our American partners understand that we also need to prepare for the arrival of those political prisoners who will be taken abroad”, she said.

The politician outlined key demands that the Belarusian side is asking US officials to convey to Lukashenka’s regime. Political prisoners should have a choice — to remain in the country or to leave; there must be access to detainees in difficult conditions, including those with children and serious illnesses; and repression must stop.

“We also continue to speak about the ongoing repression. Our American partners understand this as well — we make it clear that while one person is released, two are imprisoned, and this could continue indefinitely, with people being detained and traded. We have said more than once that the Americans are not naive, they understand all this well. They are proceeding step by step to secure the release of as many people as possible. We remain in constant contact; I will not go into details, but I hope that there will be good news this month”, the opposition leader said.