The Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights on Tuesday called for the immediate release of opposition journalist Roman Protassevich and his companion, arrested in Minsk after the diversion of an airliner by the Belarusian authorities (Belarus ).
"They should both be allowed to return to their intended destination in Lithuania," spokesman Rupert Colville said during a regular UN press briefing in Geneva.
In addition, the Belarusian opposition called on the United States and the G7 to increase the pressure on the regime of Alexander Lukashenko.
The European Union decided Monday evening to close the airspace to Belarus, a former Soviet republic bordering the EU, and to adopt a new set of sanctions against senior officials and state entities.
Emmanuel Macron agrees to invite the opposition to the G7
After an interview with US national security adviser Jake Sullivan, Belarusian opposition leader Svetlana Tikhanovskaya on Twitter called on "the United States to isolate the regime and to exert pressure with sanctions."
The presidential candidate of August 2020, forced to take refuge in Lithuania last summer, also called, in a message published on Telegram, "the participation of the Belarusian democratic forces in the G7" scheduled for June 11 to 13 in the Kingdom. -United.
French President Emmanuel Macron has already indicated that he is in favor, according to his entourage quoted by AFP.
World
Plane baffled in Belarus: arrested opponent says he "confessed" in disputed video
World
Air France suspends overflight of Belarus after the arrest of an opponent
World
Belarus
UN