Polish-Belarusian talks after an eight-year break - Poczobut hopes for an improvement in the situation in Belarus

The parties officially confirmed that such a conversation took place. The talks concerned, among others: the situation on the border, but also the issue of regional security. The last known bilateral meeting of the foreign ministers of Poland and Belarus took place in October 2016.

Andrzej Poczobut, a political prisoner and activist of the Union of Poles in Belarus, emphasizes in a conversation with Paweł Żuchowski that Belarus wants to improve relations because it has an interest in it.

Regardless of the statements, the Belarusian regime is aware that cooperation with the European Union is the basis for the Belarusian economy to maintain its stability, he said.

Poczobut hopes that the situation in Belarus will improve

The oppositionist welcomed the information about Polish-Belarusian talks. I learned that the meeting was initiated by the Belarusian side, which confirms Belarus's interest, he said.

I hope that the result of such meetings will be that the situation in Belarus will improve in terms of human rights and the situation of the Polish minority, he said in an interview with our journalist.

Andrzej Poczobut emphasizes that Belarus is a totalitarian state. As he explains, if the situation improves even for a moment, it will be a success.

Lukashenko's influence "limited"

The journalist and activist of the Union of Poles in Belarus emphasizes that talks with Belarus may lead to an improvement in the situation on the border.

Migrants are very active on the Latvian section of the border. I hope that the neighbors' stand of solidarity will influence these refugees to move in a different direction, he said.

However, there are no illusions that as long as the war in Ukraine continues, no one can guarantee how Lukashenko will behave.

Lukashenko's ability to limit some Russian actions is not impressive. This does not mean that Lukashenko is a puppet or is inactive. But its impact is limited - first of all - he explained.

He pointed out that as long as the war in Ukraine continues, no one can guarantee how Lukashenko will behave. We know that the territory of Belarus was used against Ukraine, that there was an attack on Ukraine from the territory of Belarus. This is a problem. I think that as long as the war in Ukraine continues, it is simply premature to talk about a reset, he emphasized.

Important meetings in the American capital

On Wednesday, Poczobut met with John Coale, the special envoy of US President Donald Trump, who led to the release of prisoners of Alexander Lukashenko's regime. "We talked about the situation of the Polish minority in Belarus, the Union of Poles, political prisoners and generally the possibilities of improving the situation inside Belarus. I am grateful for his involvement in my release," the oppositionist emphasized on the X platform.

The Polish Embassy in Washington thanked the American for his actions to free the journalist. “We are extremely grateful to John Coale for his incredible work to free the Belarusian-Polish journalist Andrzej Poczobut, who was wrongly imprisoned for political reasons in Belarus,” the embassy wrote on the X website.

Poczobut also met with Congressman Jamie Raskin in Washington. In this case, the topic was also the Union of Poles in Belarus, political prisoners and dialogue with Lukashenko in order to "expand the field of freedom inside Belarus.