As US envoy prepares new talks with Lukashenko, the wife of missing activist Anatol Kotau pleads for his inclusion in any prisoner release deal.
LONDON – Three months after a prominent Belarusian dissident vanished during a trip to Turkey, his wife is making a desperate appeal to Washington, believing US diplomacy may be her last hope to find him alive.
Anatol Kotau, a former senior official in President Alexander Lukashenko’s government who became a vocal critic, disappeared on August 21 after landing in Istanbul. His wife, Anastasia, who spoke with him via messaging app after his arrival, says the communication then went silent.
“He promised to send me the address of his hotel. He never did,” she told Reuters, asking to use only her first name for safety reasons. Supporters of Kotau allege he was likely abducted by the Belarusian KGB or Russia’s FSB security service—a fate that has befallen other regime critics abroad.
A Target for the Regime
Kotau’s background makes him a high-value target for Lukashenko’s government. After serving as secretary general of Belarus’s Olympic committee and in the presidential administration, he fled the country in 2020 following the cracked-down pro-democracy protests.
From exile in Poland, he continued his opposition work. In 2024, he was convicted in absentia on charges of “extremism” and sentenced to 12 years in prison.
Anastasia says she does not know why he traveled to Turkey, noting he had a return ticket booked. Turkish authorities later informed her that from Istanbul, he flew to the coastal city of Trabzon and boarded a private yacht bound for Sochi, Russia—a destination that makes no sense for a man on Russia’s wanted list.
Pinning Hopes on US Intervention
With the trail going cold, the opposition and Kotau’s family are looking to the United States. John Coale, President Donald Trump’s special envoy for Belarus, is expected to hold a new round of talks with Lukashenko aimed at securing the release of political prisoners.
“I have great hope for the American negotiations,” Anastasia said. “I would really like for my husband’s name to be included on the lists for release, for exchange.”
Franak Viacorka, a senior aide to Belarusian opposition leader Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya, told Reuters there is a clear “KGB trace” in the case, which has been raised with Western governments.
For Anastasia, the wait is torment. “The situation is horrible,” she said, juggling care for the couple’s two-year-old son with the agonizing silence. “The main goal is to find him.”
