A Trump representative met with Lukashenko in Minsk
John Cole, the U.S. President’s Special Envoy for Belarus, arrived in Minsk on September 15 and met with Alexander Lukashenko. In particular, the parties discussed the implementation of agreements between Washington and Minsk and the issue of frozen “Belaruskali” funds. The U.S. also wants to secure the release of more political prisoners in Belarus.
John Cole, the U.S. President’s Special Envoy for Belarus, arrived in Minsk on Tuesday, September 15. There, he held a meeting with Belarusian dictator Alexander Lukashenko. Along with Cole, the U.S. delegation included State Department representative Christopher Panico and Sarah Ryan, an advisor on strategic communications for the White House Office of Special Envoys for Belarus and Ukraine.
On the Belarusian side, Prime Minister Alexander Turchin, KGB Chairman Ivan Tertel, and Belarus’s Permanent Representative to the UN Valentin Rybakov were present at the talks.
Lukashenko called for compliance with the agreements
During the meeting, Lukashenko called on the American side to abide by the agreements that Washington and Minsk had previously reached. “This is not a demand, but my request to you: that we strictly adhere to the agreements on our part and on the part of the United States of America. We have reached many agreements regarding our economic relations,” Lukashenko stated.
Judging by video footage of the meeting published by his press service, the parties separately raised the issue of Belaruskali’s frozen funds. The amount in question is approximately $43–44 million, which is held in the Belarusian company’s account at Citibank in the United States.
Prime Minister Oleksandr Turchyn raised this issue during the talks. In response, John Cole stated that the U.S. side had already approached Citibank regarding the possible unfreezing of the account. This issue is part of a broader dialogue between the U.S. and Minsk on easing certain economic restrictions.
The U.S. Seeks Further Release of Political Prisoners
Another key issue in the talks is the release of individuals whom the Belarusian authorities are detaining for political reasons. Back in August, John Cole said he was planning a trip to Belarus specifically to secure the release of more political prisoners.
At that time, the U.S. envoy stated that, under previous agreements, they had succeeded in securing the release of hundreds of people. “We secured the release of 500 people, and then another 200 or so were pardoned. So the actual number is about 700–800 people. I hope to bring that number up to a thousand soon,” Cole said.
At the same time, the Belarusian service of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty notes that there are confirmed reports of 646 people released over the past two years. However, not all of them were political prisoners. Negotiations between the Belarusian government and the administration of U.S. President Donald Trump regarding the release of prisoners began in 2025. As part of this process, Minsk agreed to release some of the prisoners in exchange for an easing of U.S. sanctions.
Now Washington is seeking to continue this process and secure the release of a new group of prisoners. The meeting between Cole and Lukashenko marked the latest stage in contacts between the U.S. and the Belarusian government. At the same time, the parties are discussing economic issues, including sanctions and access for Belarusian companies to international financial transactions. This was reported by the Belarusian service of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty.
