COPENHAGEN, 25 June 2025 – OSCE Parliamentary Assembly President Pia Kauma (Finland) and Secretary General Roberto Montella, together with Lucie Potůčková (Czechia), Sargis Khandanyan (Armenia), and Carina Ödebrink (Sweden), the Chair, Vice-Chair and Rapporteur of the OSCE PA’s General Committee on Democracy, Human Rights and Humanitarian Questions, welcome the recent release of Siarhei Tsikhanouski and others.

In a statement issued today, Kauma, Montella, Potůčková, Khandanyan, and Ödebrink said the following;

“We recognize the significant diplomatic efforts that contributed to this development and view it as a meaningful step toward restoring democratic freedoms in Belarus.

The continued imprisonment of over a thousand political detainees in Belarus highlights the urgent need for meaningful engagement between citizens, institutions and the international community.

We reiterate our call on the Belarusian authorities to immediately end arbitrary detentions, release all political prisoners, and respect the fundamental rights of the Belarusian people.

The OSCE PA remains firm in its commitment to defending the right of all individuals to live free from politically motivated imprisonment - an essential foundation for lasting peace, stability, and democratic resilience in Belarus and beyond.”

Yesterday, OSCE PA Special Representative on Political Prisoners Steve Cohen (United States) issued a statement welcoming the release and urging Minsk to act swiftly to free all political prisoners.