The third meeting of the EU Consultative Group with the Belarusian democratic forces and civil society took place in Brussels on 25 June, in the presence of Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya and other prominent figures of the Belarusian democratic forces and civil society.

In the margins of the meeting, EU High Representative Josep Borrell held a bilateral meeting with Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya. He expressed appreciation for the work of the democratic forces under the leadership of Ms Tsikhanouskaya and reconfirmed the EU’s solidarity and support for those striving for a free, independent and democratic Belarus. He underlined that the EU distinguishes very clearly between the illegitimate Lukashenka regime, that deserves condemnation, and the oppressed Belarusian people, whom the EU supports. It was underlined that the EU stands ready to implement further measures to hold the regime accountable, as stated in the latest Council Conclusions on Belarus.

In the meeting of the Consultative Group, the EU and Belarusian representatives discussed the political situation in Belarus, including the deteriorating human rights situation, as well as Belarus’s growing dependence on Russia, the regime’s complicity in Russia’s war of aggression against Ukraine, and its instrumentalisation of migration at the EU’s external borders.

The EU stands in solidarity with the more than 1,400 political prisoners currently illegally detained in Belarus and continues to call for their immediate and unconditional release. The EU remains committed to pursuing justice for those suffering from oppression, and accountability for those responsible, and stands ready to adopt further restrictive and targeted measures as long as the regime continues its repressive actions.

Since the fraudulent elections of August 2020, the EU has committed almost €140 million in support of the Belarusian people. The EU remains ready to activate a €3 billion comprehensive plan in support of a democratic Belarus, once Belarus embarks on a path to democratic transition.

The third meeting of the Consultative Group was chaired by EEAS Managing Director Mr Michael Siebert and the leader of Belarus’s democratic forces Ms Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya, with the participation of representatives of various Belarusian civil society organisations in exile.