Overview
- U.S. special envoy John Cole announced the revocation of potash sanctions after meeting Aleksandr Lukashenko in Minsk.
- Volodymyr Zelensky said Ukrainian intelligence participated and that about 100 people, including five Ukrainians, were freed.
- Kolesnikova’s release was reported by her sister on X, and the NGO Viasna confirmed Bialiatski’s release.
- Kolesnikova had received an 11-year sentence in 2021 and Bialiatski a 10-year sentence in 2023 on charges widely described by supporters as politically motivated.
- Belarusian state media attributed the pardons to a request by President Donald Trump, while other reporting ties the move to lifting Biden-era sanctions, leaving aspects of the deal’s attribution in dispute.