MINSK, May 24. /TASS/. As far as the emergency landing of a Ryanair plane on Sunday is concerned, the actions of Belarus were in full accordance with international rules. That said, a number of critical statements made by certain EU states and bodies can be considered hasty, Belarusian Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Anatoly Glaz said in a statement published on Monday.
"There is no doubt at all that the actions of our competent bodies were also in full accordance with the established international rules. Of course, given this context, we are astonished by the rush to make openly bellicose statements by a number of countries and European bodies. The situation is clearly and directly being ratcheted up," the spokesperson said.
The diplomat pointed out that "the situation is being deliberately politicized, absolutely groundless accusations are being sounded off, and labels are being fixed." "At the same time, there is no clear desire to make sense of the situation objectively. Instead, we are hearing immediate calls for sanctions once again," Glaz noted. The Belarusian Foreign Ministry is calling on those involved to remember passenger safety rules and to analyze the situation calmly, and wait for expert conclusions. "We can only draw any noteworthy conclusions based on this," the spokesperson said.
A Vilnius-bound Ryanair flight that took off from Athens was forced to make an emergency landing at Minsk International Airport on Sunday after a reported bomb threat. The plane landed safely and no bomb was found on the aircraft. Roman Protasevich, one of the co-founders of the Nexta Telegram channel, which was recognized as extremist in Belarus, was among the passengers. Protasevich, currently living in Lithuania and wanted in Belarus, was detained after the airliner had landed in the Belarusian capital. The plane left Minsk and continued on to Vilnius late on Sunday.