Karina Bovsunovska14:25, 24.12.25

5 min.393

American officials may have thought they could find a way to help the 71-year-old head of state, who is overweight.

During a meeting between the American envoy and the self-proclaimed President of Belarus Alexander Lukashenko, the issue of lifting sanctions was raised, and the Belarusian leader also asked the American if he had lost weight, The Wall Street Journal writes . 

“It was a moment of intimacy in one of the strangest diplomatic initiatives since Trump returned to power. Lukashenko wanted Washington to ease sanctions on some of his country’s most profitable companies – and repair his presidential plane,” the article noted.

In return, Lukashenko was willing to trade the only resource he had in abundance: political prisoners. If Cole succeeds, it could be a test run for the Trump administration’s main goal of bringing Russian dictator Vladimir Putin and his $2 trillion economy out of isolation, the WSJ said.

“And perhaps, American officials thought, they could find a way to help the 71-year-old head of state, who is overweight and wants to lose weight. They decided to consider organizing the supply of Zepbound for Lukashenko’s personal use,” the publication added.

After meeting with Lukashenko, Cole said his efforts to establish a personal relationship with the Belarusian leader were intended to showcase Trump’s approach to world leaders whom the West considers odious. 

“This is truly Trump-style. It doesn’t matter who you talk to, if that person can give you what you want, that’s all that matters,” a spokesman for the US president noted.

The WSJ recalled that last month Lukashenko, who calls himself “the last and only dictator in Europe,” released 123 prisoners, including Nobel Prize laureate Oles Bilyatsky and opposition figure Maria Kolesnikova.

It is noted that since Trump took office, Belarus has released more than 250 prisoners from more than 10 countries, including at least five who have American citizenship. As the WSJ notes, this is one of the largest releases of political prisoners since the fall of communism. 

“Instead, the US is throwing an economic lifeline to his regime, one of the most repressive in the world. Washington has lifted sanctions on potash, a key fertilizer ingredient and an important source of hard currency for Belarus, the third-largest producer after Canada and Russia. The Trump administration has also agreed to Boeing supplying software and spare parts for the state-owned airline Belavia. As an added bonus, the presidential plane will receive some long-needed repairs,” the article emphasizes.

Now the Trump administration hopes that Belarus will become an example of the reward that Putin can also receive if Russia helps the United States peacefully end the war in Ukraine. 

“Ultimately, Putin will find himself in a situation where he will have to make a very difficult decision. It is important that the person he knows best and trusts the most speaks positively about the deal,” one American official said in comments to reporters.

In turn, the WSJ summarized:

“Lukashenko’s unofficial channel, described by more than a dozen current and former U.S. and European officials, including several negotiators, has become an integral part of the talks being led by Trump’s golf partner, Steve Witkoff, to end Europe’s deadliest conflict since World War II.”

(C)UNIAN 2025