Elena Ramanauskienė, a Lithuanian citizen, will be tried in Belarus for espionage, the country’s media reports.
The Lithuanian Foreign Ministry says it is aware of the situation.
“We are aware of the situation, and we are providing consular assistance,” Paulina Levickytė, a spokesperson for the foreign minister, told BNS on Thursday.
According to the Belarusian news website nashaniva.com, the Lithuanian citizen Ramanauskienė is accused of espionage and her case is due to be heard in a court in Minsk in closed sessions on June 3.
If found guilty, the Lithuanian woman could be sentenced to three to seven years in prison in Belarus.
It is not reported when the Lithuanian citizen was detained.
Information on the website of the Central Electoral Commission indicates that Ramanauskienė ran for the local council in Druskininkai in 2019. She previously worked at the Belarus-owned Belorus sanatorium in Druskininkai.
According to the 15min news website, the woman may have been detained by Belarusian officers last year when she was on her way back to Lithuania from Belarus where she was visiting her family members.
Last summer, Belarusian media reported that Andrei Kobel, the former head doctor of the Belorus sanatorium, would be tried for spying for Lithuania. He was detained by the Belarusian KGB at the end of 2022.
The Foreign Ministry once again urges Lithuanian citizens not to travel to Russia and Belarus in the wake of the intensification of hostile and provocative actions by the authorities of these countries against Lithuanians staying in or temporarily visiting them.
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