Belarusian opposition leader meets Spanish premier

By Alyssa McMurtry

OVIEDO, Spain (AA) - Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez met Belarusian opposition leader Svetlana Tikhanovskaya in Madrid on Thursday.

“Welcoming her is welcoming a free Belarus that resists a level of repression unprecedented in Europe since the end of the Cold War,” said Sanchez, according to a statement.

During the meeting, Sanchez sent a clear message that Spain supports the Belarusian democratic movement.

In 2020, Tikhanovskaya found herself at the head of mass political demonstrations against President Alexander Lukashenko who won a 6th consecutive term in a disputed election, which resulted in widespread arrests.

Tikhanovskaya’s husband, the former opposition leader, was sentenced to 18 years behind bars, and she fled the country.

While in Spain, Tikhanovskaya also met Spain’s Queen Letizia, the country’s foreign minister, and the head of the Spanish congress, among others.

In a tweet, she said her meeting with Foreign Minister Jose Manuel Albares “recharged” her “with hope and optimism,” after he assured her that Spain will continue differentiating the Belarusian regime from its people and that it will continue issuing visas to citizens.