Poczobut Meets Coale in the United States

Reform.news Editorial Team · 24 September 2026, 07:36

https://reform.news/en/poczobut-meets-coale-in-the-united-states/

Former political prisoner and journalist Andrzej Poczobut met with U.S. presidential special envoy John Coale in the United States.

As Poczobut wrote on social media, he spoke with Coale about the Polish minority in Belarus, the Union of Poles in Belarus, as well as political prisoners and the possibility of improving the situation inside the country.

“I am grateful for Coale’s efforts to secure my release and the release of other political prisoners. I am keeping my fingers crossed for his mission and his next visit to Belarus!”, he wrote.

Poczobut was released this spring after a five-for-five exchange conducted by Poland and Belarus. The United States also took part in organizing the exchange. At the time of his release, Andrzej Poczobut was assured that he would be able to return to Belarus. In early September, he made a week-long trip to the country, where he met with relatives and activists from the Union of Poles in Belarus. At the same time, security forces took an interest in him at the border and at home: he was summoned to the police immediately after arriving, but the summons was later canceled.