Ivan Kravtsov, who helped to organise Babariko's presidential bid, told Reuters it was the first glimpse of the former banker and politician since all visits, phone calls and correspondence with him were severed in April 2022.

Viktor Babaryko was arrested in 2020 after challenging authoritarian leader Alexander Lukashenko at the polls.

Belarus denies that President Lukashenko apologized to Ukraine's Zelensky, despite Zelensky's claims in a 2022 phone call. The interview with Lex Fridman brought attention to Belarus's role, including hosting Russian military operations.

Shortly after Russia's full-scale invasion began, Belarusian dictator Alexander Lukashenko apologized to President Zelensky over the country's involvement in the war, Zelensky revealed in an interview with American podcaster Lex Fridman published on Jan.

"No apologies have been made by the Belarus president to Zelensky, for the simple reason that we have nothing to apologize for," Lukashenko's spokesperson Natalia Eismont said.