Belarus released 25 political prisoners on Wednesday as the United States lifted sanctions on two Belarusian companies, US envoy John Coale announced following his latest visit to Minsk.
Those freed include human rights campaigners, political activists, journalists and lawyers.
The release marked the culmination of more than a year of negotiations between Coale and Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko, a close ally of Russian President Vladimir Putin.
Speaking to reporters in the Lithuanian capital Vilnius, where the freed prisoners were taken, Coale said he expected to return in about a month and hoped to see "hundreds" freed at that point.
Coale praised President Donald Trump on social media, saying his "commitment to direct diplomacy delivers results" and that the administration would continue to "improve US-Belarus relations". Trump had tasked Coale with securing the release of hundreds of detainees. In March, Belarus released 250 prisoners following a pardon.
The releases came a day after Coale promised Lukashenko that US banks would return tens of millions of dollars in frozen Belarusian assets.
The US also announced it would lift sanctions on Lakokraska, a paint and industrial coatings manufacturer, and Bellesbumprom, a state-owned enterprise overseeing the forestry, pulp and paper sectors.
Lukashenko has led Belarus since 1994 and has long been shunned by the West for repressing political opponents and supporting Russia's war in Ukraine.
The European Union's lead spokesperson for foreign affairs and security policy, Christian Wigand, acknowledged that the 25 prisoners were released as a result of US efforts. "We welcome this step," he wrote. "800+ individuals remain arbitrarily detained in appalling conditions. Belarus' regime should release all political prisoners, immediately and unconditionally."
The Belarusian human rights watchdog Viasna, which the government banned after declaring it an extremist organisation, said many of those released had been sentenced to several years in prison.
Among those freed was journalist Andrei Alyaksandrau, who had been serving a 14-year sentence. He was arrested in 2021 on allegations of "financing protest activities", alongside his girlfriend Iryna Zlobina, who received a nine-year sentence.
Alyaksandrau told Viasna he had lost 30 kilograms while in captivity "for the motherland" but was "in a good mood". He said he was "very glad that these almost six years are over" and that he had not seen Zlobina — whom he married in a pre-trial detention centre in 2022 — in four years.
Three other journalists — Dzmitry Navazhylau, Kiryl Pazniak and Liudmila Chekina — were also released and immediately deported to Lithuania. Reporters Without Borders said it was "delighted" by their release but denounced their expulsion.
Exiled opposition leader Svetlana Tsikhanouskaya said she was happy for the relatives of the 25 freed prisoners "who have been waiting for this day". Her husband, Siarhei Tsikhanouski, was freed last year after spending five years in jail.
"Every release requires tremendous effort, and it is clear that [Lukashenko] does not want to release all political prisoners," she wrote, noting that hundreds more remain behind bars.
