Belarus May Release Additional Prisoners in May, Says US Envoy

Belarus could release more prisoners in May, according to a US envoy, following a prisoner exchange deal completed in March. The authoritarian country released 250 political prisoners in March in exchange for the United States lifting sanctions on two Belarusian banks, the finance ministry, and three potash-producing companies. The March prisoner release was part of a broader diplomatic arrangement between Washington and Minsk, representing a rare instance of cooperation between the two countries. Belarus has held hundreds of political prisoners since mass protests erupted in 2020 following disputed presidential elections that kept longtime leader Alexander Lukashenko in power.