Trump appoints John Coale as special envoy to Belarus to push for more prisoner releases

US President Donald Trump on Sunday announced that John Coale, who earlier helped secure the release of prisoners from Belarus, would serve as his special envoy to Minsk, tasked with negotiating the freedom of additional detainees.

The appointment comes as Washington steps up its diplomatic outreach to the authoritarian government of President Alexander Lukashenko, a long-time ally of Russian President Vladimir Putin. The United States has dispatched several delegations to Minsk this year in an effort to deepen engagement with the Belarusian leadership.

In September, Belarus released 52 prisoners following a direct appeal from Trump. The US president has previously called on Lukashenko who has ruled Belarus for more than three decades to free the remaining 1,400 detainees, referring to them as hostages.

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”He (Coale) has already successfully negotiated the release of 100 hostages, and is going for an additional 50,” Trump said in a post on his Truth Social network.

”I would like to thank, in advance, the Highly Respected President of Belarus, Alexander Lukashenko, for his consideration on the release of these additional people.”

September’s release was the biggest batch of prisoners pardoned by Lukashenko, who is seeking to repair relations with the U.S. after years of isolation and sanctions.

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The United States closed its embassy in Minsk in February 2022 after Putin used Belarus as a launch pad to send tens of thousands of troops into neighboring Ukraine.