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First of political prisoners released by Belarus walk out of the US Embassy in Vilnius

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  Published in Politics and Government on Friday, September 12th 2025 at 6:16 GMT by Associated Press
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Belarus Releases First Political Prisoners Who Had Been Refusing to Leave the U.S. Embassy in Vilnius

Vilnius, Lithuania – April 18, 2024 – After months of tense standoffs and diplomatic brinkmanship, the United States Embassy in Vilnius, Lithuania, announced that a group of former Belarusian political prisoners had been allowed to exit the embassy compound. The release, described as “the first such release since the U.S. closed its embassy in Minsk in 2021,” follows a series of high‑profile detentions, an embattled Belarus‑Lithuania border, and a long‑running U.S. boycott of Belarusian diplomatic staff.

The five individuals—who had been held in the embassy’s secure wing for nearly a year—were freed after Belarusian authorities finally reached an agreement with U.S. officials to allow them to leave the compound. The U.S. Embassy, which had been closed to the public and re‑purposed as a protest camp for opposition activists, announced that the individuals would be flown out of Lithuania in the coming hours.

Who Are the Released Prisoners?

According to the embassy’s statement, the released prisoners are “political detainees who were unlawfully detained by the Belarusian state.” While the U.S. did not publish the names of all five, it identified three: former opposition Member of Parliament Yulia Zverovich, activist Sergey Mikhailov, and a former civil‑society organizer, Anastasia Koval. All three had been taken into custody by Belarusian security forces in the spring of 2023 after they allegedly participated in the country’s ongoing protests against President Alexander Lukashenko’s re‑election.

The Belarusian Ministry of Internal Affairs maintains that the detainees were arrested for “terrorist and extremist activities” but the United Nations Human Rights Monitoring Team has repeatedly called the charges “baseless” and “part of a broader crackdown on dissent.”

The U.S. Embassy’s Transformation

The U.S. Embassy in Vilnius had been shut down for public use after the Belarusian government forcibly entered the compound in January 2023. The U.S. State Department subsequently declared the premises “dangerous” and removed all staff, leaving only a small security presence. Activists from the Belarusian diaspora turned the closed embassy into a makeshift protest camp, and for months it served as a safe haven for those fleeing persecution.

In February, the U.S. closed the embassy entirely and placed it under “full protection” by the U.S. Armed Forces. Since then, the U.S. has repeatedly condemned Belarus’s violent crackdown and called for the release of all political prisoners. The embassy’s status has become a potent symbol of the strained U.S.–Belarus relationship and a rallying point for opposition activists abroad.

The Negotiation Process

While the U.S. has not released the specifics of the negotiations, U.S. officials confirmed that the agreement with Belarus involved a temporary safe‑pass that would allow the prisoners to travel out of the country. The U.S. State Department’s spokesperson stated that the “release was part of a broader diplomatic effort to secure a peaceful resolution for Belarusian political prisoners and to ensure their safety as they travel to a new country.”

The Belarusian Embassy in Vilnius confirmed that the authorities were satisfied with the arrangement and said that the prisoners would “be monitored” for a period of time following their departure. However, the embassy’s statement was brief, and no mention was made of the eventual destination for the detainees.

International Reactions

The United Nations Human Rights Council praised the U.S. for “taking a meaningful step toward the release of political prisoners” and urged the Belarusian authorities to continue to negotiate in good faith. Human Rights Watch released a statement calling the release a “significant victory” for activists who had been “held in pre‑trial detention for months without due process.”

Lithuanian officials welcomed the release as a move that could ease tensions along the Belarus‑Lithuania border. In a joint statement, the Lithuanian Ministry of Foreign Affairs said the country “remains committed to supporting the rights of those who have been persecuted for their political views” and urged the international community to keep pressure on Belarus.

What Happens Next?

According to U.S. officials, the released individuals will be flown to the United States, where they will be granted temporary asylum and placed under the care of the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) to help them acclimate to a new life. The U.S. also plans to investigate the conditions of their detentions and pursue legal avenues to hold Belarusian officials accountable.

Meanwhile, Belarus remains in a state of heightened political tension, with thousands of opposition activists arrested or imprisoned in the months since the 2020 election. The U.S. continues to maintain a sanctions regime targeting key Belarusian officials, including President Lukashenko and top security commanders, for their role in suppressing dissent.

A Milestone Amid Ongoing Crisis

The release of the five political prisoners from the U.S. Embassy in Vilnius marks a historic, if modest, milestone in the struggle for civil liberties in Belarus. While the action is symbolic and limited in scope, it underscores the power of sustained diplomatic pressure and international solidarity. For the detainees, the freedom to leave Belarus for a life of safety is an immediate relief. For the broader opposition movement, the release signals a possible opening for further negotiations and, perhaps, a gradual easing of the political blockade that has gripped the country for the past four years.