The incident will be considered at an upcoming European Council meeting / REUTERS
The European Union says the landing of a Ryanair plane flying en route from Athens, Greece, to Vilnius, Lithuania, was forced by a Belarusian military aircraft.
That s according to a declaration by High Representative on Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Josep Borrell on behalf of the EU on the forced diversion of Ryanair flight FR4978 to Minsk on May 23, 2021. The plane, owned by an EU company, flying between two EU capitals and carrying more than 100 passengers, was forced to land by a Belarusian military aircraft, the declaration said.
18:00, 24.05.21
World
249
The EU position was conveyed that the outrageous action by Belarusian government constitutes another blatant attempt to silence all opposition voices in the country.
REUTERS
Upon request by EU High Representative Josep Borrell, the Secretary-General of the European External Action Service, Stefano Sannino, summoned the Ambassador of the Republic of Belarus to the European Union, Aleksandr Mikhnevich, to condemn the inadmissible step of the Belarusian authorities, who forced a civilian plane to perform an emergency landing in Minsk and detained its passenger Mr Raman Pratasevich, an independent Belarusian journalist and activist.
That s according to a press release by the External Action Service, seen by UNIAN.
+
U.S., European allies call for ban on all overflight of Belarus after forced landing of Ryanair plane
10:15, 24.05.21
World
615
The Belarusian authorities on May 23 forcedly landed a plane heading from Athens to Vilnius and arrested journalist Roman Protasevich, who was on board the plane.
The Lukashenko regime forcefully lands a Ryanair flight to arrest a journalist / Photo from t.me/tutby official
The United States and European allies have called for a ban on all overflight of Belarus after a forced landing of a Ryanair plane in Minsk, Belarus. We call for an immediate inquiry to be held by the International Civil Aviation Organisation [ICAO] into this clear violation of free transit between states and the threats to the aircraft, says a joint statement issued by U.S. Senate Foreign Relations Committee Chairman Bob Menendez (D-N.J.).
Coveney said the incident yesterday was a state-sponsored hijacking / REUTERS
The Belarussian grounding of a Ryanair flight amounts to aviation piracy.
This was announced by Irish Foreign Affairs Minister Simon Coveney, the Irish Examiner reported.
Coveney said the incident on May 23, which saw a Ryanair flight from Athens to Vilnius grounded over a supposed security concern, was a state-sponsored hijacking.
Coveney said that the Belarussian regime has no democratic legitimacy and called on the EU to show a clear and tough response.
Read alsoNATO says forcible landing of passenger plane in Minsk requires international probeHe told RTE radio he would like to speak to the Belarussian honorary consul in Dublin, but stopped short of advocating the banishment of all diplomats across the EU.
11:30, 24.05.21
World
249
REUTERS
NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg says that a forcible landing of a Ryanair passenger plane in Minsk, Belarus, requires an international probe. Closely monitoring forcible landing in #Belarus of flight to Vilnius & reported detention of opposition figure Roman Protasevich. This is a serious & dangerous incident which requires international investigation, he tweeted late on May 23.
He says Belarus must ensure the safe return of the crew and all passengers.
Forced landing of Ryanair plane and Roman Protasevich s arrest
On May 23, 2021, a Ryanair plane flying en route from Athens, Greece, to Vilnius, Lithuania, was diverted and forced to land at Minsk airport, Belarus. After landing, the country s authorities arrested co-founder of Telegram s opposition channel NEXTA, Roman Protasevich (Raman Pratasevich), who was on board the plane.