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Macron meets exiled Belarus opposition leader

French President Emmanuel Macron became the highest-profile Western leader to meet with the exiled Belarus opposition leader Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya on Tuesday (September 29).

Macron was in Lithuania, where the opposition leader fled amid weeks of anti-government protests in her country.

Macron pledged support to the country's people and said quote "we need to be pragmatic".

Tsikhanouskaya fled after the disputed Aug. 9 election, where incumbent President Alexander Lukashenko was declared the landslide winner.

Opponents say the results were rigged.

Tsikhanouskaya has met the prime ministers of Lithuania, Norway, and Poland. She may also meet German chancellor Angela Merkel in October, but it hasn't been confirmed.