Members of the European Parliament and EU Foreign Policy Chief Borrell debate the bloc’s response to Belarus forcing a Ryanair flight to divert and land in Minsk last month on Tuesday, June 8.
On May 23, a Ryanair flight from Athens to Vilnius was diverted and forced to land in Minsk due to an alleged bomb threat. Belarusian opposition journalist and activist Roman Protasevich and his Russian girlfriend Sofia Sapega who were on the flight, were detained upon landing in Minsk, sparking widespread international condemnation.
The EU officials responded to the incident by tasking the European Council with preparing new sanctions on Belarusian individuals and entities as well as banning Belarusian carriers from using EU airspace and airports, while urging international airlines to avoid flying over Belarus.
