Belarusian opposition leader Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya has informed Lithuanian lawmakers of her decision to relocate to Poland, sources told the BNS news agency on Saturday.
Tsikhanouskaya shared the decision during a meeting last week with the Lithuanian parliament’s provisional group supporting democratic forces in Belarus, according to two lawmakers from different political parties who attended the meeting and spoke on condition of anonymity.
AFP also reported the move Saturday, citing four members of Tsikhanouskaya’s team and a source in Poland’s Foreign Ministry, all speaking anonymously.
One of the Lithuanian lawmakers told BNS that several members of Tsikhanouskaya’s team are expected to continue working in Vilnius.
As previously reported, Lithuania reduced Tsikhanouskaya’s security protection at the end of 2025, transferring responsibility from the Dignitary Protection Service to the police. Authorities said the change reflected a lower threat level, while critics argued it downgraded her status.
Tsikhanouskaya challenged President Alexander Lukashenko in Belarus’ disputed 2020 presidential election. The opposition says the vote was rigged and that Tsikhanouskaya was the rightful winner.
Belarus, ruled by Lukashenko since 1994, cracked down on mass protests that followed the election, arresting thousands and forcing tens of thousands of people into exile.
Tsikhanouskaya’s aide Denis Kuchinsky told reporters that her husband, Siarhei Tsikhanouski, who was released from prison last year, is currently in the United States for security reasons.
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