As the European People’s Party (EPP), we welcome the release of hundreds of political prisoners through international diplomacy, including 25 on 16 September 2026 following talks in Minsk with US Special Envoy John Coale. Yet politically motivated arrests and convictions continue. Releases do not mean repression has ended; humanitarian steps cannot replace systemic change. Democratic states must coordinate further efforts. We demand the immediate and unconditional release of all political prisoners, an end to repression and torture, and full legal and political rehabilitation of victims. Prisoners must have medical care, legal assistance and family contact; international humanitarian organisations must have access to them. Those released must freely choose whether to stay in Belarus or leave, without forced exile, passport confiscation or arbitrary travel restrictions. Belarusians forced into exile must be able to return safely and voluntarily without fear of persecution. We condemn the persecution of political opponents, human rights defenders, lawyers, journalists and civil society, the misuse of “extremism” legislation to suppress dissent, and the entrenchment of repression in law. We demand an end to “extremist” designations of independent, European and international media and restoration of freedom of expression, association and political activity. We condemn continuing violations of freedom of conscience, religion and belief, including denial of re-registration and court-ordered dissolution of individual parishes of the Belarusian Greek Catholic Church, and the forced dissolution of the Protestant New Life Church, whose building the authorities demolished in June 2023. We demand an end to the persecution of believers and religious communities, the reversal of forced dissolution orders, and respect for everyone’s right to practise religion individually and collectively.

We demand an end to the transnational repression against Belarusians abroad, including threats, persecution of relatives, and restrictions on consular services and access to documents. The European Union (EU) and its Member States must protect those targeted.

We demand that the Lukashenka regime end its complicity in Russia’s military aggression against Ukraine, including providing territory and infrastructure; cease hybrid attacks against the EU, including instrumentalising migration; and stop actions heightening military tensions on European borders. Belarusian military exercises on 15–18 September 2026 near Poland, Lithuania and the Suwałki Gap, and Ukrainian reports of reactivated relay stations in Belarus supporting Russian drone strikes on Ukraine, underscore the urgency of a coordinated EU strategy. This long-term strategy must address the risk of Russia drawing Belarus further into hybrid aggression and military provocations against EU Member States, combining targeted sanctions, diplomacy, humanitarian engagement and support for democratic forces, independent media, human rights defenders and civil society. We call on the Council of the European Union, on a proposal from the High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, to consider appointing an EU Special Representative for Belarus under Article 33 of the Treaty on European Union. The mandate should cover facilitating political prisoners’ release, coordinating diplomacy and preventing further escalation. A permanent diplomatic channel on humanitarian issues is also needed. We call on EU Member States to implement the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe’s Resolution 2499 (2023) and the “Luxembourg Solutions”: simplify entry and legal residence procedures for Belarusians forced into exile; ensure long-term legal status and access to travel documents, education, employment, healthcare and humanitarian protection; support integration and protection against discrimination.

The EPP reaffirms its support for freedom, democracy, human rights, the rule of law, and Belarus’s sovereignty and independence. We stress the need to distinguish between the Belarusian people and the Lukashenka regime, avoid isolating society and strengthen ties with Europe. Belarusians must freely determine their future. Long live Belarus!