On Monday, the Swedish Transport Agency took the decision to dissuade Swedish airlines from flying over Belarusian airspace.
Later in the evening, EU leaders urged not to let Belarusian airlines into the EU.
Despite that, a plane landed on Tuesday from Minsk as planned at Arlanda before returning.
But now the stop is a fact.
On Tuesday evening, the Swedish Transport Agency announced that the traffic permit for Belavia Airlines will be revoked and that the company will not be allowed to operate any flights between Sweden and Belarus for the time being.
- It is a decision for preventive purposes.
Under the current situation, we do not see a guaranteed safe traffic management.
That is why we choose to act, says Gunnar Ljungberg, director of the department for shipping and aviation at the Swedish Transport Agency in a press release.
"Passenger safety is most important"
It was on Sunday that Belarus' President Alexander Lukashenko ordered a passenger plane en route to Lithuania to land in Minsk.
On board the plane was regime critic Roman Protasevich, who was arrested at the scene.
The Swedish Transport Agency now recommends all passengers affected to contact their airlines.
- We are well aware that this can create problems for travelers. But the safety of passengers is most important and we have therefore decided to temporarily stop the flights. We follow the development of the security situation for civil aviation in Belarus and the region, says Gunnar Ljungberg.