State-sponsored air piracy: Belarus dictator tests the international community
Belarus dictator Alyaksandr Lukashenka sparked international uproar on May 23 by forcing an EU airliner to land in Minsk and detaining a dissident Belarusian journalist among the plane's passengers. (Andrei Stasevich/BelTA/TASS via REUTERS)
European leaders agreed to a series of sanctions measures against Belarus on May 24, the day after the East European nation sparked uproar by forcing an EU passenger jet to land in Minsk and abducting a high-profile dissident passenger. The rapid EU decision to press forward with a new round of sanctions underscored widespread alarm over Belarus dictator Alyaksandr Lukashenka’s actions and the challenge they pose to the rules-based international order.