WASHINGTON — Belarusian opposition figures and human rights advocates have called on U.S. authorities to help investigate the disappearance of a Belarusian dissident amid allegations that Belarusian or Russian security services may have been involved, according to statements from the dissident’s family and opposition representatives.
The case centers on Anatol Kotau, a former Belarusian sports official and government critic who disappeared after traveling from Poland to Turkey in August 2025. His wife, Anastasia Kotau, said he stopped communicating shortly after arriving in Istanbul and has not been heard from since, according to interviews she gave to Reuters. Supporters of Kotau have urged U.S. officials to raise the case during ongoing contacts with Belarusian authorities.
Kotau, 45, had been sentenced in absentia in Belarus on charges linked to what authorities described as extremist activity. He had also learned that he was on a Russian wanted list, according to his wife. Belarusian authorities have not publicly confirmed any role in his disappearance and previously told his family that he was not in Belarus, Reuters reported.
The case has attracted attention from Belarusian opposition groups operating in exile. Franak Viacorka, a senior adviser to opposition leader Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya, told Reuters that opposition representatives believed Belarusian security services could be linked to the disappearance.
“Definitely there is a KGB shadow, a KGB trace here,” Viacorka said, while acknowledging that no public evidence has been presented establishing responsibility.
According to Anastasia Kotau, Turkish authorities informed her that her husband traveled onward from Istanbul to the Black Sea city of Trabzon and later boarded a private yacht bound for Sochi, Russia. She said she did not believe he would have traveled voluntarily to Russia because of his legal status there. Turkish prosecutors and police did not publicly confirm details of the journey, according to Reuters.
The disappearance comes amid broader U.S. engagement with Belarus on political prisoner releases. Opposition leader Tsikhanouskaya said this month that negotiations involving U.S. envoy John Coale had helped secure the release of hundreds of prisoners, although efforts to obtain additional releases had recently slowed.
The U.S. State Department did not publicly comment on Kotau’s case when contacted by Reuters. Belarusian authorities and Russia’s border service also did not provide public responses regarding his whereabouts.
As of June 2026, Kotau’s location remained unknown, and no official findings had been released identifying those responsible for his disappearance. Investigations and diplomatic inquiries were continuing, while opposition groups said they were seeking further international assistance in the case.
