Alexander Lukashenko told a U.S. envoy representing Donald Trump on Thursday that he was open to striking a deal on the release of prisoners, according to Belarusian state media.
Lukashenko met with John Coale, a lawyer acting on Trump’s behalf, during a visit to Minsk. Coale handed him a personal letter from Trump, signed simply “Donald.”
“If Donald insists he’s ready to take in all these released prisoners, God bless you, let’s try to work out what he likes to call a ‘big deal,’” Lukashenko said, adding praise for Trump’s efforts to push for peace in Ukraine.
Later in the day, a U.S. embassy spokesperson in Vilnius, Lithuania, confirmed that Belarus had freed 52 prisoners of different nationalities. The group was already en route to Lithuania with the American delegation that secured their release.
Coale described Trump’s informal signature as a “rare act of personal friendship.”
Lukashenko, who has ruled Belarus with an iron grip for more than 30 years and maintains close ties to Russian President Vladimir Putin, has faced mounting pressure over political repression and human rights abuses. Photo by Homoatrox, Wikimedia commons.