Belarusian opposition leader Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya vowed on Sunday to continue the fight together with her husband Siarhei Tsikhanousky after he was freed the previous day after spending almost five years in prison.
“He is alive and we are together again and remain committed to our fight,” Tsikhanouskaya told reporters on Sunday.
Tsikhanouski attempted to run against Lukashenko in the August 2020 election, but was detained before the vote. His wife Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya took over the candidacy for the opposition but was forced to flee immediately following the election, receiving asylum in Lithuania along with thousands of other political exiles.
She personally thanked US President Donald Trump and his administration on Sunday for their “tireless efforts,” saying the prisoner swap would not have happened without America’s involvement.
Tsikhanouskaya also thanked Lithuania “which provided us refuge”, adding that “we are grateful for the strong and principled position of this wonderful country.”
Tsikhanousky was released from prison on Saturday along with 13 other political prisoners, just hours after Belarusian authorities announced that the country’s authoritarian president, Alexander Lukashenko, had met in Minsk with Keith Kellogg.
“President Trump has the power with just one word to release all political prisoners in Belarus. I'm asking him to say this word,” Tsikhanousky said on Sunday.
“I want to speak to all Belarusians now – if you were waiting for a sign, here is the sign,” he said in the joint press conference.
He maintained that his wife, Sviatlana, remained the leader of the opposition.
Lukashenko declared himself a victor in the August 2020 presidential election, sparking nationwide protests against the regime. Following massive repressions, hundreds of thousands of people have been forced to flee abroad.
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