French President Emmanuel Macron has promised to help mediate in Belarus, following weeks of protests over a disputed presidential vote, reports BBC News.
He called for a "peaceful transition" in the country after he met the exiled opposition leader Svetlana Tikhanovskaya in Lithuania on Tuesday.
It comes after the European Union said it did not recognise Alexander Lukashenko as the Belarusian president.
Meanwhile, Russian President Vladimir Putin denounced "pressure" on Belarus.
Russia remains Mr Lukashenko's main ally, and it has promised to provide security assistance if the political crisis worsens.
But many countries have criticised a crackdown on mass demonstrations as well as the August 9th presidential election that the opposition says was rigged in Mr Lukashenko's favour.
And on Tuesday, the UK and Canada announced sanctions on Mr Lukashenko and other senior Belarusian officials over a series of alleged human rights violations.
The EU has also threatened to impose sanctions.
"We will do our best as Europeans to help mediate," Mr Macron told reporters. "Our objective is for this mediation to begin in the next few days or weeks."
He spoke during a meeting with Ms Tikhanovskaya in Vilnius that was seen as a major show of support for the opposition figurehead.
"The aim is a peaceful transition, the release of people who are in prison for their political opinions and the holding of free elections under international observation," Mr Macron added.
He also said the German Chancellor Angela Merkel and EU Council President Charles Michel would "push" Belarus to accept mediation.
Ms Tikhanovskaya is due to visit Berlin next week and may meet Chancellor Merkel for talks, her spokeswoman told the Reuters news agency.
"[Mr Macron] supports the idea of mediation because he understands that powerful countries need to be involved to begin negotiations with Lukashenko," Ms Tikhanovskaya said.
"I think he will speak with the Russian side about Belarus and will do everything possible to involve Russia in these negotiations," she added.
But Russia responded to Mr Macron's latest comments by denouncing what it called "unprecedented external pressure" on Belarus.
In televised comments, President Putin said Belarus was in a "difficult situation" and emphasised Moscow's "timeless and all-weather" ties with the country.
And, later on Tuesday, a Kremlin spokesman downplayed the talks in Lithuania by describing it as a meeting between the "French president and a Belarusian citizen".