Belarus has agreed to free 25 prisoners as part of an interim deal under which the United States will lift sanctions on two Belarusian companies, US presidential envoy John Coale said Wednesday.
“We agreed to an interim deal, and as a show of goodwill Belarus will release 25 people and in exchange the United States will lift sanctions on two companies,” Coale said to reporters in Minsk.
The agreement comes after talks between Coale and Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko on securing the release of hundreds of people detained in Belarus, including human rights campaigners, political activists, journalists and lawyers.
The two firms are paint and industrial coatings maker Lakokraska and state-owned Bellesbumprom, which is in charge of the forestry, pulp and paper sectors, Reuters said.
Washington and Minsk will continue to work on outstanding issues, and also seek additional prisoner releases and sanctions relief, Coale said.
The latest release is less than the 250 prisoners Coale managed to get freed during his last visit to Minsk in March.
More than 900 political prisoners remain imprisoned, said Viasna, a Belarusian human rights group based abroad that is banned in the country. Lukashenko rejected any suggestion that those arrested were political prisoners.
