An American has been pardoned alongside a Belarusian journalist and activist amid a US-Russia prisoner swap
An American citizen is among three people who have been released from prison by the Belarusian government, the administration of US President Donald Trump has announced.
The release comes amid a high-profile prisoner swap between Russia and the US.
White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt confirmed the release of one American and two individuals from Belarus to reporters on Wednesday. The identity of the American was not released, with Adam Boehler, the US special envoy for hostages, explaining that the person wished to remain anonymous.
The US-funded Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty identified one of those freed as its journalist Andrey Kuznechyk. He was detained in November 2021 on charges of participating in an “extremist group.”
Activist Alena Maushuk was the third detainee to be released, pro-Western opposition leader Svetlana Tikhanovskaya confirmed on social media. Maushuk, a mother of three, was arrested for taking part in protests and convicted of “mass disorder” following the 2020 Belarusian presidential election, after opposition groups alleged widespread electoral fraud. The Belarusian government has denied the claims, asserting that the unrest was instigated by the US and its European allies, as well as neighboring Ukraine.
US Ambassador to Lithuania Kara McDonald confirmed that all three had been transferred to the Baltic country after gaining their freedom.
The development follows the return of American schoolteacher and former diplomat Marc Fogel from detention in Russian. Fogel was sentenced in 2022 to 14 years in prison on drug trafficking charges.
In exchange, the US agreed to release Russian national Aleksandr Vinnik, who was accused of laundering billions in cryptocurrency, identity theft, and facilitating drug trafficking. As part of his release, Vinnik must forfeit $100 million.
