Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what steps the Government is taking to engage with Belarusian civil society and democratic forces in exile.

We welcome the release of political prisoners in September, secured through US diplomatic efforts in close coordination with the UK and other international partners, and call for the immediate and unconditional release of all remaining political prisoners. Our Embassy in Minsk regularly attends trials and engages with the families of political prisoners.

We regularly engage with Belarusian civil society and democratic forces in exile.

We do not comment on other countries' sanctions. To date, the UK has issued over 200 sanctions in response to human rights violations in Belarus and activities destabilising or threatening to destabilise Ukraine, including through the Government of Belarus' support for Russia's aggression in Ukraine.