Ukraine reminds Belarus that it "distinguishes between the Belarusian people and the Lukashenko regime"

Acting Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha has issued a statement marking the sixth anniversary of the protests against the fraudulent presidential election in Belarus.

Source: European Pravda, citing Andrii Sybiha on social media

Details: Six years ago, protests in Belarus ended with a brutal crackdown and the exile and imprisonment of opposition figures and protesters.

Quote from Sybiha: "Six years ago, on 9 August, Belarusians clearly demonstrated their will for democratic change and their right to determine the future of their own country. Their choice was met with repression.

Details: The foreign minister also stressed that years of pressure, imprisonment and forced exile "have not erased the desire of Belarusians for freedom, democracy, and sovereignty".

He stressed that Ukraine clearly distinguishes between the Belarusian people and the regime of Alexander Lukashenko, which "which bears responsibility for enabling Russia's war of aggression against Ukraine".

Quote: "We appreciate the many Belarusians who have stood with Ukraine and opposed Russian aggression. We hope that one day Belarus will become free, independent, democratic, and European, where its people, not Moscow, decide the country's future. Such a Belarus would strengthen the security of our entire region."

Details: He also added that Ukraine would continue close cooperation with Belarusian opposition leader Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya and with all Belarusians who aspire to live in a free and European Belarus.

Background:

• Over the past year, more than 100 Belarusian political prisoners, including some of the most prominent figures such as Nobel laureate Ales Bialiatski, have been released with the mediation of the Trump administration. At the same time, hundreds of people remain behind bars.
• The Viasna Human Rights Centre said in a report marking the sixth anniversary of the crackdown on the protests that over 100,000 cases of repression, including detentions, interrogations, searches and pressure on relatives, have been recorded in Belarus. A total of 4,602 people have been recognised as political prisoners.
• In May 2026, Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya, the exiled leader of Belarus's democratic forces, visited Kyiv for the first time as Belarus's representative and met with President Volodymyr Zelenskyy. The Ukrainian Foreign Ministry also appointed an official responsible for contacts with the Belarusian opposition.

Read also: Why Zelenskyy moved closer to Tsikhanouskaya and why Ukraine needs it

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