His Excellency Gitanas Nausėda
President of the Republic of Lithuania
Dear Mr. President,
On behalf of the Belarus Democratic Forum, we respectfully invite you to consider submitting an official nomination of U.S. President Donald J. Trump and Special Envoy for Belarus John P. Coale for the Nobel Peace Prize. Such a nomination would recognize leadership that directly advances the security interests of Lithuania and the EU by addressing the most destabilizing humanitarian and political crisis on their eastern frontier.
We have addressed similar appeals to more than 150 parliamentarians and heads of state worldwide. For Lithuania, however, Belarus is not an abstract foreign policy issue. A nomination from Lithuania, given its historical experience with occupation, political imprisonment, and forced exile, would carry exceptional moral authority and strategic clarity.
Belarus is a neighboring state whose internal repression has generated mass displacement, cross-border instability, and persistent hybrid threats affecting Lithuania’s security, infrastructure, and societal resilience. For years, the imprisonment of thousands of Belarusian citizens for peaceful civic activity remained unresolved, reinforcing a permanent source of tension along Lithuania’s border.
In 2025, this deadlock was broken. Through direct U.S. engagement and the personal leadership of President Trump, following appeals by 75 Nobel Peace Prize laureates coordinated by the Belarus Democratic Forum, more than 300 political prisoners were released. This marked the first sustained humanitarian breakthrough in Belarus in many years, achieved where previous diplomatic efforts had failed.
President Trump’s intervention did not merely alleviate individual suffering; it reduced pressure on Lithuania as a frontline EU and NATO state by lowering the intensity of state-engineered migration flows, disinformation campaigns, and other hybrid tactics emanating from Belarus. These efforts were reinforced by the work of Special Envoy John P. Coale, distinguished American attorney and diplomat, whose structured negotiations helped transform an initial breakthrough into a repeatable and sustainable humanitarian mechanism.
In the spirit of Alfred Nobel’s will, which defines the Peace Prize as recognition of those who have rendered “the greatest service to the cause of peace and fraternity,” we submit that the sustained humanitarian mediation led by President Trump and Special Envoy Coale meets these criteria. Their efforts alleviate human suffering, contributed to de-escalation in the region, and created conditions for lasting peace through the release of political prisoners and the return of 500,000 refugees, opening a pathway toward their full rehabilitation.
We respectfully urge you to submit a nomination to the Nobel Committee by 31 January 2026.
The people of Belarus, and especially those who remain imprisoned for their peaceful civic stance, hold in deep gratitude the principled leadership, compassion, and solidarity demonstrated by American leaders.
With highest consideration,
Dr. Valery Tsepkalo
Founder and CEO, Belarus Hi-Tech Park, Ambassador of Belarus to the United States (1997–2002), Former First Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs, Presidential Candidate, 2020
Dmitry Bolkunets
Secretary General, Belarus Democratic Forum