Ukraine's victory will open path to freedom for Belarus – Tsikhanouskaya

Ukraine is defending the right of not only the Ukrainian but also the Belarusian people to live without a dictatorship of empires, violence, and fear, Head of the United Transition Cabinet of the Belarusian democratic opposition Svitlana Tsikhanouskaya said.

Speaking at a press conference following a meeting with Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andriy Sybiha in Kyiv on Monday, Tsikhanouskaya said: "We understand very well that Ukraine today is defending not only its independence. Ukraine is defending the right of our peoples to live without a dictatorship of empires, without violence and fear... I am confident that Ukraine's victory will open the path to freedom for Belarus as well," an Interfax-Ukraine correspondent reported.

Tsikhanouskaya said that this is her first working visit to Ukraine, and she is in Kyiv to emphasize that the Belarusian people support Ukraine's independence, sovereignty, and territorial integrity.

"We recognize that the regime in Minsk made Belarus an accomplice in this aggression. Lukashenko is a usurper who lost the elections; he does not represent Belarusians and serves exclusively the interests of the Kremlin and imperial Russia. But Belarus is not Russia. Belarusians stood with you on the Maidan and have been dying in the trenches since 2014. Thousands of Belarusians opposed the war, and hundreds remain behind bars for supporting Ukraine," Tsikhanouskaya said.

As reported, Belarusian opposition leader in exile Svitlana Tsikhanouskaya arrived in Kyiv on Monday morning for her first official visit.