Interventions in international air traffic are no small thing, and certainly not if they are used to pursue political goals.
The Belarusian ruler Alexander Lukashenko has been in business long enough that he could figure out how the West would react to the action to arrest an opposition journalist.
His willingness to accept possible sanctions shows that repression remains the regime's top priority.
Lukashenko fights the opposition by all means.
Only a few days ago the country's most important independent news portal was closed; now it has arrested a blogger whose Telegram channel is a central medium for the protest movement.
The loud criticism from Europe and America is justified, if only because the example should not set a precedent.
Even so, the West's options are limited.
In the past, Lukashenko always made sure not to be too absorbed by Russia and at times sought rapprochement with the EU.
For the crackdown on the mass demonstrations last year, however, he had to seek support from Putin, on whom he is economically dependent anyway. As a result of historical coincidence, the two authoritarian rulers, who actually treat each other with suspicion, are currently in a similar situation. Both feel resistance to their long-term rule, and both face it with the methods of the police state and the secret services. No wonder that Russian spokesman Lukashenko quickly stood by his side.
After the EU, NATO also wants to deal with the incident. This is justified because it was a flight between two alliance members. However, there is no military threat, so the alliance should leave it to public statements. It already delivers the most important thing that NATO can do for Lithuania in particular: deterrence.