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Belarus Releases 25 Political Prisoners in U.S. Sanctions Deal
Confirmed
In Short: The U.S. and Belarus have reached an interim agreement, with Belarus freeing 25 political prisoners in exchange for sanctions relief on two companies, according to reports.
Belarus has released 25 political prisoners in an interim deal with the United States, which will lift sanctions on two Belarusian companies in return, according to U.S. presidential envoy John Coale. The move comes ahead of Chinese President Xi Jinping's visit to the U.S. on September 24, with the U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom urging President Trump to continue pushing for the release of religious prisoners in China.
The agreement was reached after talks between Coale and Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko, who has ruled the country since 1994. Lukashenko has denied holding political prisoners and rejected claims that his government is replacing freed detainees with new opponents. According to Viasna, a Belarusian human rights group, more than 900 political prisoners remain in custody.
The U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) praised the release, stating that President Xi showed he has the power to release religious prisoners and an obligation to do so under international law. USCIRF chair Asif Mahmood and vice chair Cece Heil called for continued efforts to secure the release of religious prisoners in China and an end to religious persecution.
Both sides agreed to continue negotiations aimed at resolving outstanding issues and securing further prisoner releases, with Coale saying they would also seek to remove additional U.S. restrictions. Belarus has identified 490 new political prisoners in 2025, according to Kyiv Post reports, while Lukashenko maintains that those arrested are not political prisoners.
What's confirmed
- Belarus has agreed to free 25 prisoners as part of an interim deal under which the United States will lift sanctions on two Belarusian companies, US presidential envoy John Coale said Wednesday.
- “We agreed to an interim deal, and as a show of goodwill Belarus will release 25 people and in exchange the United States will lift sanctions on two companies,” Coale said to reporters in Minsk.
What's still developing
- “The Kyrgyz government regularly violates freedom of religion or belief (FoRB) as laid out in its constitution as well as in international documents such as the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR), to which it is a signatory,” the report said.
- She said negotiations should focus on emptying Belarusian prisons rather than rehabilitating Lukashenko’s government internationally.