Belarusian opposition leader Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya arrived on her first official visit to Kyiv on Monday, May 25.
She wrote about this on social media.
She showed a personal ticket for the “Ukrzaliznytsia” train, on which the route was indicated as "Full Przemysl — Free Kyiv — Free Minsk".
After arriving, Tsikhanouskaya visited the grave of Belarusian volunteer Maria Zaitseva, who died fighting for Ukraine in January 2025.
"It symbolizes not only our resistance to dictatorship, but also Ukrainian-Belarusian solidarity. It was very important for me to start this visit by honoring the man who gave his life for the freedom of Ukraine and Belarus," Tsikhanouskaya wrote.
Recently, the self-proclaimed President of Belarus Alexander Lukashenko said that he was ready to meet with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky “anywhere” in Ukraine or Belarus. At that time, Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andriy Sybiha said that “there is someone on the Ukrainian side to meet with”.
Who is Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya?
In 2019, Tsikhanouskayaʼs husband Serhiy wanted to run for president, but he was detained and arrested. Since the spring of 2020, Tsikhanouski has been in prison, and his wife Sviatlana has been running for president of Belarus in his place.
In August 2020, preliminary presidential “elections” were held in Belarus. According to official data, Alexander Lukashenko won by a wide margin. However, data from observers and the opposition say that oppositionist Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya won.
After that, Belarusians called for new elections and took to the streets in large-scale protests. The protests were brutally suppressed by security forces, with the opposition reporting at least eight deaths. Thousands of protesters and opposition figures were convicted, and independent media and human rights activists were also subjected to repression.
After the election, Tsikhanouskaya moved to Lithuania and became the face and leader of the Belarusian opposition. In 2023, she was sentenced in absentia in Belarus to 15 years in prison.
Tsikhanouskaya is currently continuing her political activities abroad. In June 2025, her husband Serhiy Tsikhanouski was released from custody after a visit to Minsk by Donald Trumpʼs special representative Keith Kellogg.
For more news and in-depth stories from Ukraine, please follow us on X.