John Cole stated he hopes to secure the release of political prisoners by mid-September
"I think I will succeed."
U.S. Special Envoy for Belarus, John Cole, told Voice of America in an interview that he will arrive in Belarus in September.
"In a couple of weeks, I'm going back to Belarus, and I hope to secure the release of even more political prisoners. I think I will succeed," he said.
According to Cole's own estimates, about 700-800 Belarusian political prisoners have been released with his involvement.
"We secured the release of five hundred, then another two hundred were released. So the real number is approximately 700-800 people. I hope to bring it to a thousand soon," he said.
He calls it an achievement that almost all the most famous prisoners have been released. And also, that it was possible to arrange for some released political prisoners to stay in Belarus and return home.
"For me, this was very important. People returned home to their families. This is a real result, and this issue still remains part of our negotiations," he adds.
Cole says he reports primarily to the President of the United States and the Secretary of State.
He also said that he communicates with some of the released political prisoners. And also communicates with opposition leaders, with Sviatlana [Tsikhanouskaya], and many others.
"I also maintain contacts with Lithuanians, Poles, trying to establish relations between everyone who can contribute to resolving the situation," he said.
Earlier, Cole stated that he expects the release of a large group of political prisoners in the near future.
According to public data, as a result of previous visits by the American delegation, 438 people were released: on June 21, 2025 – 14 political prisoners, on September 11 – 51 people, on December 13 – 123 people, on March 19, 2026 – 250 people.
Currently, according to human rights defenders, there are 878 political prisoners in Belarus.
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Comments
так и будет ездить?
а когда санкций в кармане не останется, что он предложит за новых пару тысяч?
а что дальше с ними происходит без доков в чужой стране - это их уже не заботит?