The EU has effectively banned air connections with Belarus in the wake of a forced diversion of a Vilnius-bound flight from Athens which the Baltic states have labelled a "hijacking", however critics of the move fear the new measures could hurt dissidents fleeing regime repression.
Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania will expel several Russian diplomats and embassy employees in solidarity with Prague, Lithuanian Foreign Minister Gabrielius Landsbergis announced during a joint press conference on Friday (23 April). EURACTIV’s media partner LRT.lt reports.
When the conflict in Nagorno-Karabakh, a region disputed by Azerbaijan and Armenia, began in the late 1980s, Lithuania and the Baltic states helped bring the warring sides to the negotiating table in Riga. Despite sharing tea, jokes, and reaching an early breakthrough – the deal ultimately failed.
The protests in Belarus have been organised using Telegram, an encrypted social media app able to sidestep internet bans. With the biggest channels now followed by millions of subscribers, the few people managing them are wielding unprecedented, and largely unchecked, power.
