Belarus

Belarus leader would ‘not hesitate’ to invite Russian troops if needed

Belarus would not hesitate to invite Russian troops if needed, President Alexander Lukashenko said, although he said there was no need for them now. Russia has maintained close military and…

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Belarus police raid homes and offices of journalists, rights activists

Belarusian police searched the offices and homes of journalists and human rights activists for the third successive day on Friday, extending what rights activists say is a new crackdown on…

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Belarus seeks Russia’s help in response to EU sanctions

Moscow (dpa) - Belarus' authoritarian President Alexander Lukashenko, under pressure due to European Union sanctions, sought further support from Russia on Tuesday at a meeting with President Vladimir Putin. "The dynamics are wild.…

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Belarus sees little impact on debt from EU sanctions, to rely on Russia and Asia

The Belarus finance ministry sees little impact from European Union sanctions on its ability to service its external debt obligations, it said in a statement to Reuters, adding that Russian…

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Belarus leader threatens to halt transit of EU goods via his country to east

Alexander Lukashenko, the president of Belarus, on Tuesday threatened to stop the transit of European Union goods via his country to Russia and China in retaliation for EU sanctions. The 27-nation…

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U.S. hints at further sanctions on Belarus

Washington hinted at the possibility of further economic sanctions against Belarus in a strongly worded speech to the U.N. Human Rights Council on Monday. The United States announced targeted sanctions…

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Belarus closes border with neighbouring Ukraine

Belarus' leader Alexander Lukashenko ordered the closure of the border with Ukraine, seeking to block what he called an inflow of weapons to coup-plotters detected by his security services, BelTA…

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Belarus tells EU envoy to go, withdraws migration help in sanctions row

Belarus on Monday told the European Union's representative in Minsk to return to Brussels for consultations and said it would stop helping the 27-nation bloc combat illegal migration as retaliation against…

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Belarus dictator floods EU with migrants in retaliation for sanctions

The embattled Belarusian dictator has made good on his threat to flood the European Union with migrants by sending hundreds of Iraqis on ‘package holidays’ to neighbouring Lithuania in retaliation…

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Western sanctions bordering on a ‘declaration of economic war’, says Belarus

Belarus views Western sanctions, imposed in response to Minsk's forced landing of a Ryanair plane last month to arrest a journalist on board, as a declaration of economic war, the Foreign Ministry…

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Lithuania govt readies support for companies hit by sanctions on Belarus

The Lithuanian government stands ready to provide support to its enterprises as they get hit by European sanctions on Belarus, Lithuanian Prime Minister Ingrida Simonyte said on Monday. Outraged at the forced…

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EU reaches deal on Belarus economic sanctions, according to Austria, diplomats

The European Union is set to ban new loans to Belarus after reaching a deal on Friday for economic sanctions on Minsk as punishment for forcing down a flight to…

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Russia removes Belarus opposition politician Tsikhanouskaya from wanted list – RIA

Russian police have removed Belarusian opposition politician Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya from their wanted list at the initative of the Belarusian authorities, the RIA news agency reported on Tuesday. Tsikhanouskaya fled into exile last…

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Belarus introduces prison sentences for taking part in protests

Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko on Tuesday signed into law prison sentences for people taking part in protests or insulting state officials, part of an unprecedented crackdown by the veteran leader…

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UPDATED: EU to ban Belarus overflights from midnight

European Union ambassadors on Friday adopted a plan to ban Belarus airlines from flying over EU territory or landing in EU airports, three diplomats said. The decision is part of…

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Opposition decries ‘hostage’ video as Belarus airs confession of detained journalist

Detained journalist Roman Protasevich appeared on Belarusian state television on Thursday, tearfully confessing to his role in anti-government protests in an interview which the opposition said was made under duress.…

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Belarusian prisoner tries to cut own throat in court hearing

A Belarusian prisoner detained in a crackdown on protests tried to cut his own throat during a court hearing on Tuesday after being told his family and neighbours faced prosecution…

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Belarusian opposition leader believes blogger tortured

Belarus's leading opposition politician Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya said on Monday that detained blogger Roman Protasevich had been beaten and tortured in jail. A lawyer who visited Protasevich and his girlfriend Sofia Sapega said he was…

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Russia vows to defend Belarus if EU sanctions Minsk

Russia will defend Belarus and help it if the European Union imposes economic sanctions on Minsk over the grounding of a plane and arrest of a dissident blogger, the RIA…

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Death threats and arrests: Belarus opposition media struggles at home and abroad

In an elegant apartment building in central Warsaw flying a red and white flag from its first floor balcony, a symbol of the Belarusian opposition, remnants of the anti-government media…

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U.S. to re-impose sanctions on Belarus firms over plane incident

The Biden administration said on Friday it is drawing up a list of targeted sanctions against key members of the Belarusian government following the former Soviet republic's forced landing of…

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Putin offers Belarus leader support against West in Ryanair plane standoff

Russian President Vladimir Putin on Friday offered his Belarusian counterpart Alexander Lukashenko support in his standoff with the West over his handling of the grounding of a passenger jet and the arrest of a dissident blogger. The West has accused Belarus of piracy…

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UPDATED: Ryanair says Belarus refused pilot’s request to contact airline, Lithuania trying to identify those disembarked in Minsk

Belarusian air traffic control refused a request by a Ryanair pilot to contact the airline after being told of an alleged bomb threat, leaving him with no alternative but to…

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UPDATED: Russia to allow European flights to bypass Belarus, Ukraine to ban Belarus airlines from its airspace

Russia will allow European flights to arrive and depart via routes that bypass Belarusian airspace, the RBC news outlet reported late on Thursday, despite Moscow previously denying access to two…

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FBI and Poland have launched inquiries into Belarus plane, says Lithuanian police chief

The U.S. Federal Bureau of Investigation and Poland have launched their own inquiries into the forced landing of a Ryanair plane in Belarus, the chief of Lithuania's criminal police said…

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Diplomats say Turkey pushed NATO allies into softening outrage over Belarus plane

Turkey pushed NATO allies into watering down an official reaction to the forced landing by Belarus of a passenger plane and the detention of a dissident journalist on Sunday, two…

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U.N. aviation body to probe Belarus plane grounding, first report due by June 25

The United Nations' International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) agreed to investigate the forced grounding of a Ryanair passenger plane in Minsk, an incident that prompted international outrage. ICAO's 36-nation governing…

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Detained journalist broke his own rule – Never fly over Belarus, says friend

Roman Protasevich, the Belarusian journalist jailed after his plane was forced to land on Sunday, had decided to avoid flying over Belarus because of the risk of being intercepted but…

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UPDATED: Email bomb threat sent after blogger’s plane was diverted over Belarus -Swiss email provider

Privacy-focused email provider Proton Technologies AG said on Thursday that a bomb threat cited by Belarusian authorities as the reason for diverting a Ryanair jet carrying a journalist and blogger…

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UPDATED: Belarusian flag carrier Belavia cancels flights to eight countries

Belarusian national flag carrier Belavia said on Thursday it had been forced to cancel flights to eight countries from May 27 to Oct. 30 due to flight bans. The European…

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UPDATED: EU to slap sanctions on financial transactions of Belarus, Germany says

Proposed European Union economic sanctions on Belarus will hit financial transactions by the country, Germany said on Thursday. "It is clear that we will not be satisfied with small sanctions…

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Belarusian plane turns back after warning about French airspace

A Belarusian passenger plane flying from Minsk to Barcelona turned back on Wednesday, data from website Flightradar24 showed, after Poland said it may not be able to enter French airspace.…

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UPDATED: Belarus leader denies having known arrested blogger was on board flight

Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko said on Wednesday that he had not known that dissident blogger Roman Protasevich was on board the flight that was diverted to Minsk but that he…

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UPDATED: Europe regulator urges airlines to avoid Belarus over safety

Europe's aviation regulator on Wednesday urged all airlines to avoid Belarus airspace for safety reasons, saying the forced diversion of a Ryanair flight had put in question the country's ability…

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Airlines re-route to avoid Belarus, opposition says journalist beaten

Airlines re-routed flights to avoid Belarus's airspace on Tuesday and Belarusian planes faced a possible ban from Europe, as international outrage mounted over Minsk forcing down a jetliner and arresting…

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EU air traffic agency eyes Baltic routes for flights shunning Belarus

European air traffic control agency Eurocontrol said on Tuesday approximately a 100 flights by EU and British carriers fly over Belarus every day and it would be best for them to re-route…

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EU leaders agree to pile more sanctions on Belarus over Ryanair incident

European Union leaders agreed to impose more sanctions on Belarus, including economic ones, called on their airlines to avoid the former Soviet republic's airspace and authorised work to ban Belarusian airlines from…

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Frankfurt bound Lufthansa flight from Minsk forced to late departure due to ‘threat of terrorist attack’

A Lufthansa flight to Frankfurt from Minsk airport was suspended due to the threat of an imminent terrorist act. This was stated by the press service of the airport quoted…

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UPDATED: Russia calls West’s reaction to Belarus plane incident ‘shocking’, France discussing suspension of Belarus transport links

Russia on Monday accused the West of hypocrisy in its outraged response to the diversion of an airliner to the Belarusian capital Minsk. Belarusian authorities scrambled a fighter jet and…

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