The US is to lift sanctions on two Belarusian companies

This was announced on 16 September by US President’s Special Envoy John Cole during a visit to Minsk, Belta reports. The decision will be taken in response to the release of 25 political prisoners by the Belarusian authorities.

“As a gesture of goodwill, Belarus will release 25 people. The United States, for its part, will lift sanctions against two Belarusian companies,” said Cole.

The day before, Cole met with Lukashenko in Minsk. The parties discussed the release of prisoners and possible steps to improve relations between Belarus and the US.

“President Trump’s commitment to direct diplomacy is yielding results. Thank you, President Lukashenko, for this step, and thank you also to our friends in Lithuania for their support. We will continue to improve US-Belarusian relations and are working towards the release of more people in the near future. We’re not done yet!”, Cole wrote on social media platform X following the meeting.

OJSC “Lakokraska” (Lida) – one of Belarus’s largest manufacturers of paint and varnish products – is part of the state-owned “Belneftekhim” concern. US sanctions against the company have been in place (with interruptions) since November 2007 due to human rights violations in Belarus. Its inclusion on the sanctions list was last confirmed in June 2021, following the crackdown on the 2020 protests. In January 2023, Ukraine also imposed sanctions against the company.

‘Bellesbumprom’ – a state-owned pulp, paper and wood processing concern comprising manufacturers of plywood, chipboard/MDF boards and furniture – is one of Belarus’s key export sectors. It was subjected to US sanctions on 5 December 2023 as part of a package targeting dozens of Belarusian companies and officials, in response to the regime’s repression and Minsk’s support for russia’s war against Ukraine.

The lifting of sanctions against these two companies marks another step in the gradual thaw in US–Belarus relations, which has been underway since 2025 in exchange for the release of political prisoners. Prior to this, Washington had already lifted sanctions against Belavia, Belaruskali, Belinvestbank and Bel-Kap-Steel.

Source: Forbes Ukraine