The main opponent of the regime in BelarusSvetlana Tikhanovskaya said on Friday that the United States is considering increasing its technological assistance in the fight against President Alexander Lukashenko’s crackdown.
The opponent, who like Western observers claims to have won the 2020 presidential election against Lukashenko, met with the head of US diplomacy, Anthony Blinkenas well as other top US officials during a trip to Washington.
“I was assured of full support for the Belarusian democratic movement,” he said. Tikhanovskaya to members of the State Department Correspondents Association.
“We also talked about providing Belarusian journalists and activists with equipment and technology,” he added.
According to Tikhanovskaya, the discussion also touched on means of countering disinformation from the regime, including the spread of forced confessions.
Lukashenko represents one of the main supporters of the regime of Vladimir Putin and his invasion of the Ukraine.
The opponent claimed to have shared information and evidence of such support with US officials, as well as a list of companies and countries that help the regime avoid Western-imposed sanctions.
“We discussed how to improve the effectiveness of sanctions, close the remaining holes, freeze the assets of Lukashenko and block the money that was given to him by the IMF,” he specified.
The activist and politician welcomed the individual resistance of Belarusians against the use of their territory in the war in Ukraine, stating that some 80 railways used to transport Russian military equipment were interrupted.
In a statement from the State Department, Assistant Secretary of State Wendy Sherman “emphasized the continued support of the United States for the democratic aspirations of the Belarusian people.”
Svetlana Tikhanovskayaexiled in Lithuania, traveled to Washington for the state funeral in honor of former Secretary of State Madeleine Albright.
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