by Bernard at Moon of Alabama
On yesterday’s threat Petri Krohn wrote of:
LUKASHENKO’S REVENGE (Best served cold)Last summer Ukraine’s security service SBU tried to play dirty trick on Lukashenko. Russian volunteers, who had fought on the Novorossiyan side in the Ukrainian civil war were made a fake job offer, “security” work on Syrian oil fields. The Wagnerites (as private military contractors are called in Russia) were to gather in Minsk. A Turkish airways flight would then take them to Syria.
SBU’s secret plan was to intercept the Turkish plane while in Ukrainian airspace, force it to land and arrest the “terrorists”. Something went wrong. Plan B was to claim the mercenaries had been sent by Russia and Putin to stage a coup against Lukashenko. The Belarusians in fact believed this lie for a week.
Moon of Alabama reported on the events here:
Also remember, that the plane of Bolivian president Evo Morales was forced to land in Austria in July 2013, after France, Spain, Portugal and Italy had closed their airspace on American orders.
Now read this:
‘Hijacked’: President uses fighter jet to force Ryanair flight to land in Belarus – Sidney Morning HeraldMoscow: Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko on Sunday personally ordered a fighter jet to intercept a Ryanair flight carrying a young opposition blogger, forcing it to redirect and land in Belarus.
The Boeing aircraft, flying from the Greek capital Athens to Vilnius, had almost reached Lithuania when it changed direction and was escorted to the Belarusian capital of Minsk.
On arrival, police detained activist Roman Protasevich, 26, who had been on a wanted list after last year’s mass street protests in the wake of an election in which Lukashenko claimed a landslide but disputed victory.
While the incident unfolded yesterday I amused myself with reading the know-nothing responses from several European prime minister and officials.
The President of Lithuania:
Gitanas Nausėda @GitanasNauseda – 13:14 utc · May 23, 2021Unprecedented event! A civilian passenger plane flying to Vilnius was forcibly landed in #Minsk. Belarusian political activist & founder of @NEXTA_EN was on the plane. He is arrested. 🇧🇾 regime is behind the abhorrent action. I demand to free Roman Protasevič urgently!
The President of the Nordic Council of Ministers:
Mateusz Morawiecki @MorawieckiM – 15:20 utc · May 23, 2021I have asked @eucopresident to expand tomorrow’s #EUCO agenda and discuss immediate sanctions against A. Lukashenka regime. Hijacking of a civilian plane is an unprecedented act of state terrorism. It cannot go unpunished.
The Prime Minister of Greece:
Prime Minister GR @PrimeministerGR – 15:43 utc · May 23, 2021The forced landing of a commercial plane to detain a journalist is an unprecedented, shocking act. We demand all passengers’ immediate release. Tomorrow’s #EUCO must address the need to step up pressure on Belarus. Enough is enough.
The incident is totally NOT unprecedented.
In 1954…
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