The Trump administration has appealed to Kyiv to ease sanctions pressure on Belarus's potash sector — specifically, to resume transit of potash from Belarus through Polish and Lithuanian ports. This is reported by Bloomberg, citing sources familiar with the negotiations.
Potash is a potassium fertilizer that Belarus exports in large volumes. After 2021, when the EU and the US imposed sanctions in response to the suppression of protests and the forced landing of a Ryanair flight, transit routes through Klaipėda and Gdańsk were effectively blocked. Belarusian "Belaruskali" — one of the world's largest producers — lost access to key logistics corridors.
Why Now
The request came in the context of broader US-Ukrainian negotiations on a mineral resources agreement and conditions for Washington's continued support. In other words, the easing of sanctions against Lukashenko is presented not as an independent initiative, but as an element of a package that Kyiv should consider.
The formal justification is global food security: the shortage of potassium fertilizers after 2022 has hit markets in Africa and Latin America. However, critics point to something else: the resumption of potash exports would return Minsk hundreds of millions of dollars in annual foreign exchange revenues — without any political concessions from Lukashenko.
What This Means for Sanctions Architecture
Sanctions against Belarus were built as a unified package: restrictions on potash were deliberately included because it is the main item of Belarusian exports. Removing this element without compensating conditions essentially dismantles the structure piece by piece — and creates a precedent for further "exceptions."
Lithuania and Poland, through which transit would be resumed, have not yet publicly voiced their positions. However, both countries have consistently advocated for maintaining pressure on Minsk and are unlikely to accept such a turn of events without resistance.
Kyiv has not officially confirmed or denied receiving the request. The Ukrainian side is in a difficult position: refusal risks aggravating relations with Washington at a time when military aid remains critical; agreement means weakening pressure on a regime that continues to provide its territory to Russia for strikes against Ukraine.
The main question here is not economic: if the US gets this concession without fixed conditions for Minsk — what would stop Washington from making the next similar request?
