Minsk – Spress

Ryanair calls for restoration of access to Belarusian airspace

Lê Ánh (TTXVN/Vietnam+) — Tue, 15 Jun 2021 22:36:08 +0000

According to CEO Ryanair, the politicization of airspace zones is not the way to solve the problem because it will harm the aviation industry in particular and international connectivity in general.

Ryanair aircraft at Stansted Airport, North East London, England. (Photo: AFP/VNA) On June 15, Ryanair (Republic of Ireland) confirmed that it did not support the application flight ban instead of entering Belarusian airspace for the long term, instead, the authorities of countries need to talk to Belarus to avoid a repeat of the emergency landing situation as happened last month with this airline. Earlier, on May 23, the Belarusian authorities requested a Ryanair airliner emergency landing at the airport in Minsk after receiving a bomb threat. After searching and making sure there were no security threats, the plane continued on its way to Lithuania. Belarus insists its actions were legal and will open an investigation into the false alarm. It also accused Western countries of politicizing the matter, claiming that Belarus had requested a Ryanair plane to land to arrest opposition figure Roman Protasevich and insisted it was just a coincidence. Following the allegation, the European Union (EU) and the UK banned Belarusian airlines from flying over their airspace and issued safety guidelines advising European airlines to avoid Belarusian airspace and only fly over in an emergency. Speaking to a UK Parliament committee, Ryanair chief executive Michael O’Leary said the air transport industry depends heavily on long-term “unlimited” access to all international airspace. Therefore, this CEO called for an early restoration of unlimited access to Belarusian airspace and said that EU and UK officials, in coordination with international partners, should work with the Belarusian side to ensure no repeat the problem that happened with this company. According to CEO Ryanair , the politicization of airspace zones is not the way to solve the problem because it will harm the aviation industry in particular and international connectivity in general.

NATO was surprised when Russia deployed air defense systems in Belarus

Vân Sơn — Sat, 17 Apr 2021 01:40:07 +0000

Belarusian authorities have allowed Russia to deploy air defense systems on its territory.

Documentary images are for illustrative purposes only

On the evening of April 12, 2021, an unidentified aircraft illegally entered Belarusian airspace from the Polish side.

After flying over Belarus for a while, the plane returned to Poland.

The Ministry of Defense of the Republic of Belarus announced this, after which Minsk officially asked Warsaw to explain. A few days later, Belarus said Russia would deploy an air defense system over the territory of Belarus.

On April 15, during the working process of the CIS Air Defense Coordination Committee, the Commander of the Belarusian Air-Defense Force, Major General Igor Golub, said that next summer, the Belarusian army and the army The Russian team will begin a joint combat mission, for the air defense force at one of the airfields of the Republic of Belarus.

Documentary images are for illustrative purposes only

The heads of the military agencies of the Republic of Belarus and the Russian Federation by the end of 2020, he said, had approved the plans for the two countries’ unified regional air defense system.

In the actual facility will be deployed by the forces and means of the Belarusian Air and Air Defense Forces and the Russian Aerospace Forces.

The Belarusian military leader drew attention when he reiterated that the servicemen of the Belarusian Republic regularly participate in joint training with the Russian army.

In 2021, the Belarusian Air and Air Defense Forces will participate in exercises at Ashuluk training ground in the Astrakhan region and in the “Battle of the Commonwealth – 2021” exercise.

Furthermore, this year, the country plans to conduct joint “West-2021” strategic exercises with Russia.

Major General Igor Golub added: “We would like to reiterate that, in March this year, Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko authorized the deployment of the Russian Aerospace Forces on the territory.”

According to Major General Igor Golub, the joint monitoring of Russia and Belarus is in fact a response to the willingness to respond to the aggressive approach and behavior of NATO and the Western countries.

Apparently, it was the actions of Poland and NATO that prompted Belarus to quickly enter into agreements with Russia.

Russia: US – NATO are turning Ukraine into a ‘gunpowder barrel’

Thu, 15 Apr 2021 06:05:31 +0000

Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov said that the US and EU are escalating tensions in Ukraine by stepping up military support for the country.

Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov

Responding to the TASS news agency, Mr Ryabkov said that us and NATO’s military support for Ukraine would turn the country into a barrel of gunpowder.

The Russian Foreign Minister said: “We would like to stress that NATO members, who use the fallacy to speculate on the defense of Ukraine’s independence, sovereignty and territorial integrity, should think about Kiev’s belligerent attitude, while ensuring the implementation of the Minsk Measure Package that Kiev is deliberately ignoring.”

Deputy Minister Ryabkov also said that Russia will strengthen its troops at the hotspot in the border area bordering Ukraine.

It is known that the situation of conflict on the Russian-Ukrainian border is at an alarming level. Clashes between Ukrainian forces and separatists in eastern Ukraine have escalated in recent weeks.

Amid rising violence, Russia has made a move to gather forces in areas along the border, raising concerns about the risk of a direct armed conflict in the territory where many Russian-speaking people are concentrated.

Mr Ryabkov said: “If there is any escalation, we will certainly do everything to ensure the security and safety of our citizens.”

“In the worst-case scenario, both Kiev and its Western allies will be fully responsible for the consequences,” Ryabkov added.

At the April 13 phone call, U.S. President Joe Biden called on Russian President Vladimir Putin to reduce tensions, given Russia’s increased force on the border with Ukraine.

The White House “boss” also proposed holding a summit with his Russian colleagues to resolve the disputes.

What does Russia say about the White House’s Putin-Biden meeting proposal?

Thu, 15 Apr 2021 06:05:16 +0000

The Kremlin said it was studying and considering U.S. President Joe Biden’s offer to hold a Russia-U.S. summit.

US President Joe Biden and his Russian accomplice Vladimir Putin. Photograph: Getty Images

“It’s too early to talk about the meeting (between Mr Putin and Mr Biden). This is a new proposal, it will be studied and analyzed,” Kremlin spokesman Dmitri Peskov said on April 14 when asked about the possibility of a Russia-US summit meeting, TASS reported.

Earlier, the White House announced on April 13 that President Joe Biden had held talks with Russian President Vladimir Putin to discuss a variety of regional and global issues. Mr Biden offered to meet directly with his Russian partner “in the coming months” in a third country to “discuss all the issues facing countries.”

According to Mr. Peskov, Russia “is still unclear how to organize, the order, who speaks, who presides, what the results are and whether there is a final document.” “The leaders insisted that the topic of the meeting would be discussed further through diplomatic channels,” Mr Peskov said.

According to Reuters, the proposal was made by Mr Biden amid continued strained Russia-US relations since the incumbent US President took office in January 2021.

Last month, Mr Biden angered Moscow by heavily criticising Mr Putin and blaming Russia for the scandalous Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny suspected of poisoning and questioning Russian meddling in the US election. The U.S. later imposed additional sanctions against Russia, in response from Moscow.

In a phone call with Mr Putin on April 13, Mr Biden reaffirmed Washington’s backing of Ukraine, while expressing concern about Russia’s recent significant increased military presence in Crimea and near the Ukrainian border.

In response, Mr Putin made clear Moscow’s view on resolving the crisis in Ukraine that the parties to the conflict must abide by the Minsk agreement reached in 2015. Moscow recently criticized Kiev for ignoring the deal and warned of action if the Ukrainian military launched a new war against separatists in the East.