Defiant Belarus president slams EU sanctions on plane diversion
KYIV, Ukraine — Belarus’ authoritarian president lashed out Wednesday at Europe for trying to “strangle” his country with sanctions over the diversion of a passenger jet, and he accused a dissident journalist arrested after the flight landed in Minsk of working to foment a “bloody rebellion.”
In a long, rambling speech to lawmakers and top officials, President Alexander Lukashenko defended his decision to tell the Ryanair flight to land in his country, maintaining his contention that there was a bomb threat against it. He called it an “absolute lie” that a fighter jet he scrambled forced the plane to land.
European Union leaders have denounced the move as an act of air piracy. Ryanair has said its crew was instructed to land. The plane was searched on the ground, and no bomb was found — but Raman Pratasevich, a 26year-old journalist and activist, and his Russian girlfriend were detained.
“I acted in a lawful way, protecting people in line with international rules,” said the 66- year- old Mr. Lukashenko, who has ruled the ex-Soviet nation with an iron fist for more than a quarter century, relentlessly stifling dissent.
He fumed at the EU, accusing the West of waging what he said was “no longer just an information war but a modern hybrid war” against his country of 9.3 million.
Mr. Lukashenko doubled down on the idea of a grave security risk, saying the plane was not far away from the Astravets nuclear power plant and that he had ordered air defense systems to high alert.
“We acted in strict accordance with aviation safety rules,” he said, claiming the crew hesitated for about a quarter hour before following the Belarusian flight controllers’ directions to land in Minsk. “It’s the captain who makes a decision according to all instructions and rules, and we offered our help. The captain was thinking for 15 minutes and consulting the bosses and Vilnius airport staff.”
He said the crew hesitated for so long that Belarusian authorities no longer expected the crew to turn back to Minsk, since the plane was already near the Lithuanian border, but they did. The Belarusian MiG-29 was sent to help direct the Ryanair plane to land and facilitate communication in case of problems.
“They should have been thankful to us!” Mr. Lukashenko exclaimed. “We did everything to save people.”
But he also alleged Mr. Pratasevich and his associates were working with foreign spy agencies to “organize a massacre and a bloody rebellion in Belarus.”
He also warned his other foes abroad that the authorities will go after them.
“We know your faces, and it’s just a matter of time for you to be brought to account before the Belarusian people,” he said.
Mr. Lukashenko has faced unprecedented pressure at home with months of protests following his re-election to a sixth term in an August 2020 vote the opposition rejects as rigged. But he has only increased the crackdown, and more than 35,000 people have been arrested since the protests began, with thousands beaten.
Mr. Pratasevich, who left Belarus in 2019, has become a top foe of Mr. Lukashenko. He ran a popular messaging app that had a key role in helping organize the huge protests.
In Poland, Mr. Pratasevich’s parents said they fear for his welfare and made an emotional plea for assistance.
“World, please stand up and help. I urge you very much because they will kill him, they will kill him!” Natalia Pratasevich said through tears in an interview in Warsaw.