BERLIN (AP) — Prominent Belarus opposition figure Maria Kolesnikova on Saturday picked up a prize for contributions to European unity that she was unable to collect while in prison in her homeland four years ago.
Kolesnikova was presented with the International Charlemagne Prize at a ceremony in Aachen, Germany. She won the prize in 2022, when it was received on her behalf by her sister, Tatsiana Khomich.
Kolesnikova was a key figure in the mass protests that rocked Belarus in 2020. She was a close ally of Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya, the opposition leader who was forced into exile after challenging authoritarian President Alexander Lukashenko in that year's vote.
With her close-cropped hair, broad smile and a gesture of forming her outstretched hands into the shape of a heart, she was often seen at the front of demonstrations. Kolesnikova became an even greater symbol of resistance when Belarusian authorities tried to deport her in September 2020. Driven to the Ukrainian border, she briefly broke away from security forces, tore up her passport and walked back into Belarus, where authorities took her back into custody.
The 43-year-old professional flautist was convicted in 2021 on charges including conspiracy to seize power and sentenced to 11 years in prison. She fell seriously ill behind bars and underwent surgery.
Kolesnikova was released in December along with dozens of other political prisoners as part of a deal with Washington that lifted crippling U.S. sanctions on Belarusian fertilizer exports.
The prize she received Saturday is named after the Holy Roman emperor Charlemagne, who once ruled a swath of western Europe from Aachen. Previous recipients include French President Emmanuel Macron, former U.S. President Bill Clinton, Popes Francis and John Paul II, and former German Chancellor Angela Merkel.
Kolesnikova was recognized for her “extraordinary courage” in fighting for democratic rights, free elections and respect for human rights.
Laureate Maria Kolesnikova stands for a photo in the town hall in Aachen, Germany, Saturday, March 14, 2026, before receiving the International Charlemagne Prize. (Thomas Banneyer/dpa via AP)
Laureate Maria Kolesnikova speaks after receiving the International Charlemagne Prize in Aachen, Germany, Saturday, March 14, 2026. (Thomas Banneyer/dpa via AP)
SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, accompanied by his teenage daughter, observed a live-fire test of multiple rocket launch systems, state media reported Sunday, a likely response to ongoing U.S.-South Korean military training that North Korea views as an invasion rehearsal.
The official Korean Central News Agency reported that Kim watched the strike drill involving twelve 600mm-calibre, ultraprecision rocket launchers off North Korea's east coast on Saturday.
South Korea’s military said Saturday it detected about 10 ballistic missiles fired from North Korea’s capital region toward the eastern sea. South Korea’s national security council called the launches a provocation that violated U.N. Security Council resolutions that bans any ballistic activities by North Korea.
KCNA cited Kim as saying that the drill would expose enemies within the 420-kilometer (260-mile) striking range, to “uneasiness” and give them “a deep understanding of the destructive power of tactical nuclear weapon,” KCNA said. He apparently referred to South Korea and U.S. troops stationed in South Korea.
“If this weapon is used, the opponent’s military infrastructure within its striking range can never survive,” Kim said, according to KCNA.
KCNA photos showed Kim and his daughter, reportedly named Kim Ju Ae and aged about 13, walking near huge olive-green launch trucks and looking at weapons being launched from them. The girl has been accompanying her father at numerous high-profile events like missile tests and military parades since late 2022, stoking outside speculation that she’s being groomed as his heir.
Experts say North Korea’s large-sized rocket launchers blur the boundaries between artillery systems and ballistic missiles because they can create their own thrust and are guided during delivery. North Korea has said some of these systems are capable of delivering nuclear warheads.
The springtime U.S.-South Korean Freedom Shield training, a computer-simulated command post exercise, is to run through March 19. North Korea often reacts to the exercise with its own weapons tests and fiery rhetoric.
U.S. Army soldiers operate their drone during a joint river-crossing exercise between South Korea and the United States as a part of the Freedom Shield military exercise in Yeoncheon, South Korea, Saturday, March 14, 2026. (AP Photo/Ahn Young-joon)
U.S. Army's armored vehicles cross a floating bridge on the Imjin River during a joint river-crossing exercise between South Korea and the United States as a part of the Freedom Shield military exercise in Yeoncheon, South Korea, Saturday, March 14, 2026. (AP Photo/Ahn Young-joon)
South Korean army's tanks move to attend a joint river-crossing exercise between South Korea and the United States as a part of the Freedom Shield military exercise in Yeoncheon, South Korea, Saturday, March 14, 2026. (AP Photo/Ahn Young-joon)
In this photo provided by the North Korean government, its leader Kim Jong Un, second right, and his daughter, third right, attend a live-fire test of multiple rocket launch systems, at an undisclosed place in North Korea Saturday, March 14, 2026. Independent journalists were not given access to cover the event depicted in this image distributed by the North Korean government. The content of this image is as provided and cannot be independently verified. Korean language watermark on image as provided by source reads: "KCNA" which is the abbreviation for Korean Central News Agency. (Korean Central News Agency/Korea News Service via AP)
In this photo provided by the North Korean government, its leader Kim Jong Un, center right, and his daughter, center left, attend a live-fire test of multiple rocket launch systems, at an undisclosed place in North Korea Saturday, March 14, 2026. Independent journalists were not given access to cover the event depicted in this image distributed by the North Korean government. The content of this image is as provided and cannot be independently verified. Korean language watermark on image as provided by source reads: "KCNA" which is the abbreviation for Korean Central News Agency. (Korean Central News Agency/Korea News Service via AP)
