Merkel to meet Belarus's 'courageous' opposition leader in Berlin

Plan for meeting with Svetlana Tikhanovskaya comes as EU leaders try to resolve sanctions dispute

Angela Merkel has announced plans to meet the Belarusian opposition leader, Svetlana Tikhanovskaya, as EU leaders gathering at a Brussels summit seek to untangle a dispute that has delayed sanctions against Belarus's authoritarian government.

In a speech in the Bundestag on Wednesday, the German chancellor expressed her admiration for the women protesting against the Belarusian regime. If you see the courage of the women on display in the streets there, for a life of freedom and free of corruption, then I can only say: I admire that," she said.