Belarusian opposition leader Svetlana Tikhanovskaya has called on the European Union to maintain sanctions against Belarus, warning against following the U.S. lead.

Axar.az reports, in an interview with European Pravda, she said, “There is no need for Europeans to copy Trump’s policy. We believe European sanctions must remain—they are the most important for Belarus. U.S. sanctions are needed to free people, while European sanctions are needed to free the country.”

Tikhanovskaya added that lifting sanctions on President Alexander Lukashenko primarily benefits Kremlin leader Vladimir Putin and stressed that partial releases of political prisoners would not end repression.

“Even if he releases all 900, the next day he will imprison more, and by then sanctions would already be lifted,” she said.

For context, Ukraine imposed sanctions against Lukashenko on February 18, and the EU extended its existing measures against Belarus for another year on February 26.