Ukraine rejected any easing of sanctions on Belarusian potash producer Belaruskali, Foreign Minister Andriy Sybiha said during a joint press conference with Belarusian opposition leader Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya in Kyiv on Monday, May 25.
Responding to questions about reports that international partners are pressuring Ukraine to soften restrictions on Belarusian fertilizers, Sybiha said Kyiv remains firmly opposed to any sanctions relief.
“We reject any approaches related to easing pressure on the aggressor,” Sybiha said, according to Ukrinform.
“On the contrary, the pressure must be strengthened.”
Sybiha added that Ukraine had received proposals from the Belarusian democratic opposition regarding possible new sanctions measures.
The minister declined to directly comment on media reports suggesting the United States was among the countries encouraging Kyiv to reconsider restrictions on Belarusian potash exports.
However, he argued that lifting sanctions would not change Belarusian leader Alexander Lukashenko’s support for Russia.
“There should be no illusions that any easing will pull Belarus away from Russia’s sphere of influence,” Sybiha said.
“It will not work. The regime is too deeply integrated with Russia.”
Earlier reports said the United States was pressuring Ukraine to ease restrictions on Belarusian fertilizer exports, which remain an important source of revenue for the Lukashenko regime.
On May 21, the US urged Ukraine to support easing restrictions on Belarusian potash fertilizer imports and to lobby European countries to do the same, arguing it could reduce Minsk’s dependence on Moscow.
According to Bloomberg’s report, Washington has argued that allowing Belarusian potash back into wider markets could help reduce Minsk’s economic dependence on Moscow and create an opening for improved relations with Lukashenko, people familiar with the discussions said.
Potash is a key fertilizer ingredient, and Belarus has long been one of the world’s major producers.
The request follows earlier US sanctions relief for Belarusian potash firms. In March, Washington removed sanctions after Belarus released 250 prisoners in a deal brokered by the US.
However, European restrictions remain in force.
The EU sanctioned Belarusian potash in 2022 after Minsk supported Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine, and those measures are valid until February 2027, with the possibility of extension.
The main logistical obstacle is Lithuania. Before sanctions, Belarus used Lithuania’s Klaipeda port to export potash to major buyers including Brazil, China and India.
Tsikhanouskaya visits Ukraine
Tsikhanouskaya arrived in Kyiv on Monday for her first visit to Ukraine after the weekend’s attack, at the invitation of President Volodymyr Zelensky.
She is expected to meet with Ukrainian officials and take part in the International Summit of Cities and Regions, an annual event that rallies international support for Ukraine’s reconstruction.
In a separate post on X, Tsikhanouskaya said her visit began with a tribute to Belarusian activist Maria Zaitseva, who died fighting for Ukraine.
“For me, Maria is a symbol of a new generation of Belarusians – people who understand that the freedom of Belarus and the freedom of Ukraine are inseparable,” she added.
Tsikhanouskaya also visited the Chornobyl Nuclear Power Plant and the abandoned city of Pripyat during her trip to Ukraine, describing the experience as “extremely difficult and emotional.”
In a post on X, she said the empty streets, abandoned schools and children’s toys in Pripyat were a reminder of “how quickly ordinary peaceful life can be shattered.”
“For Belarusians, this is not someone else’s tragedy — it is our shared pain,” she wrote, noting that she was “also a child of Chornobyl” and had participated in recovery programs for children affected by the 1986 nuclear disaster.
She warned that Russia’s war against Ukraine and Moscow’s use of “nuclear blackmail” made the lessons of Chornobyl especially relevant today.
“I believe that Belarus and Ukraine will together build a future without war, dictatorship, or nuclear threats,” Tsikhanouskaya added.
She also visited the site of Russia’s massive strike on Kyiv and accused Lukashenko of enabling Russia’s war against Ukraine by allowing Belarusian territory to be used for missile launches and the deployment of Russian forces and weapons.
“The Lukashenko regime bears its share of responsibility for this,” Tsikhanouskaya said in a post on X earlier this week.
She also said Belarusians support Ukraine because “we feel this pain as our own.”