Belarusian Fighter for Ukraine Extradited from Vietnam to Face Charges in Belarus

Vasil Verameichyk, a former soldier of the Kalinouski Regiment who fought on Ukraine’s side, was extradited from Vietnam to Belarus last week, an independent Belarusian outlet Zerkalo reported on November 20.

Verameichyk now faces imprisonment after Belarus’s Supreme Court recently labeled the Kalinouski Regiment a terrorist organization.

The Kalinouski Regiment is a Belarusian volunteer unit formed in March 2022 to support Ukraine in its defense against Russia’s full-scale invasion. Named after 19th-century Belarusian revolutionary Kastus Kalinouski, the regiment is composed of Belarusians opposing the regimes of Alexander Lukashenko and Vladimir Putin and is operating within Ukraine’s Armed Forces.

Belarusian authorities claim the regiment recruits and trains "terrorists" and funds "terrorist activities." Belarusian Prosecutor General Alexander Karpovich accused its members of planning and executing acts of terrorism within Belarus, citing "evidence" provided to the court.

Verameichyk supported the 2020 protests against electoral fraud in Belarus before fleeing to Ukraine, where he joined the Kalinouski Regiment at the outset of Russia’s full-scale invasion.

He later relocated to Lithuania but was allegedly denied residency due to his past service in the Belarusian army. Arrested in Vietnam on November 13, he was extradited to Belarus the following day.

Belarusian authorities have long employed brutal tactics to suppress dissent, including mass surveillance, arbitrary arrests, and politically motivated prosecutions. Critics of the regime face harsh prison sentences, often on fabricated charges, while peaceful protests are met with violence.