The United States will suspend an air service agreement with Belarus following the Ryanair plane incident, White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki said in a statement.
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| US suspends air service agreement with Belarus |
"The United States will suspend its discretionary application of the 2019 U.S-Belarus Air Services Agreement," the statement says.
The US Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) on Friday recommended the country’s air carriers to "exercise extreme caution" when flying in the Belarusian airspace. The agency, however, stopped short of banning air carriers from entering the airspace of Belarus.
On May 23, a Vilnius-bound Ryanair plane that took off from Athens made an emergency landing at Minsk International Airport after a reported bomb threat. A MiG-29 fighter jet alert crew was scrambled to escort the plane.
After the landing, the plane was inspected and no bomb was found inside. The Belarusian Investigative Committee has opened a criminal case into a false bomb alert. Among the passengers on the flight was Roman Protasevich, one of the co-founders of the Nexta Telegram channel, which Minsk recognizes as extremist.
Protasevich was detained by law enforcement officials once the plane had landed in the Belarusian capital. Russian national Sofia Sapega was also detained. On Sunday evening, the plane left Minsk airport and continued to Vilnius.
