U.S. Special Representative Kit Kellogg reported that during a recent meeting with Alexander Lukashenko in Minsk, he raised issues not only about the bilateral relations between the United States and Belarus but also about Russia’s war against Ukraine.
This is reported by Kyiv24
Meeting in Minsk and Negotiations on the War
Kellogg noted that the American delegation held substantive discussions with the Belarusian leader and his team. Key cooperation issues and initiatives to halt Russian aggression in Ukraine were discussed during the visit. According to Kellogg, the U.S. president continues to make active efforts to end the war and prevent further civilian casualties.
“Great teamwork. Our delegation met with Belarusian leader Lukashenko and his team. John Cole conducted discussions on bilateral relations between the United States and Belarus, resulting in the release of 14 political prisoners from six countries, including Japan and Poland. I discussed the war between Russia and Ukraine and how the U.S. president is actively seeking to end the war and stop the killings. President Trump continues to strengthen peace through strength,” Kellogg stated.
Release of Political Prisoners After Negotiations
Kellogg’s meeting with Lukashenko took place on June 21 in Minsk. Just a few hours after the negotiations, news broke about the release of 14 political prisoners, including former presidential candidate Sergey Tikhanovsky. Along with him, blogger and founder of the YouTube channel “Country for Life” Sergey Tikhanovsky, former lecturer at Minsk State Linguistic University Natalia Dulina, journalist Igor Karney, and businessman Sergey Sheleg, who was a defendant in the case of the “Union of the Belarusian National Shield,” anarchist Akihiro Gayevsky-Hanada, and eight other convicted individuals were also freed and deported to Lithuania.
Among the released prisoners are two citizens of Japan, three citizens of Poland, two Latvians, as well as representatives from Estonia, Sweden, and the United States. This decision marked an important step in the humanitarian sphere amid a complex international situation.