Belarus leader pardons 18 prisoners in an effort to improve ties with the US

TALLINN, Estonia (AP) — Belarus’ authoritarian president has pardoned 18 more prisoners as part of his recent effort at a rapprochement with the United States.

In a decree announced on Thursday, President Alexander Lukashenko pardoned 18 prisoners, including 15 people convicted on extremism charges, which are widely used in Belarus in politically motivated prosecutions. A total of 11 pardoned prisoners are women, the authorities said in an online statement.

This is the latest in a series of prisoner releases, encouraged by U.