Sergei Tikhanovsky, husband of Belarus opposition leader Svetlana Tikhanovskaya, has made a fervent appeal to U.S. President Donald Trump to help secure the release of political prisoners in Belarus. After being unexpectedly freed and reunited with his wife in Lithuania, Tikhanovsky, who spent five harrowing years in solitary confinement as a political prisoner, called for Trump to leverage his influence. Their reunion coincides with a significant visit by U.S. special envoy Keith Kellogg to Minsk, marking a notable re-engagement with the Belarusian government under authoritarian leader Alexander Lukashenko.
In an emotional press conference, Tikhanovsky recounted the brutal conditions he endured, describing his treatment in prison as inhumane. He revealed that during his incarceration, he had no contact with the outside world—denied the simple human rights that many take for granted. “For five years, I couldn’t even go to confession with a priest. No letters, no calls, no priest, no lawyer,” he lamented, breaking down in tears as he shared his trauma. Despite his release, he emphasized the plight of over 1,000 political prisoners still languishing in Belarusian jails.
Tikhanovsky was arrested in 2020 while planning to run against Lukashenko in the presidential elections. His cries for help echo the larger struggle for democracy in Belarus, where dissent is met with severe repression. The emotionally charged call for Trump’s intervention is seen as a ray of hope amidst a political landscape riddled with fear and oppression. Tikhanovsky implored, “Trump has such power and such possibilities, that with one word he could free all political prisoners. I ask him to say that word now.”
As the international community keeps a close eye on Belarus, the involvement of figures like Trump could potentially lead to significant changes in the country’s human rights situation.