The United States on Friday moved to sanction Belarus following the forced diversion of a commercial Ryanair flight and arrest of a dissident journalist, Roman Protasevich, who was a passenger on the plane. Various other governments have rebuked Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko and his regime in the wake of the incident, as well, and while he recently warned the harsh responses could spark another world war, he seemed unfazed on Saturday while he was hanging out with Russian President Vladimir Putin.
Intercepting the Ryanair flight indicated that Lukashenko — who, prior to arresting Protasevich, spent months cracking down on protests against his regime — was prepared to forego any appearance of ties with the European Union, and his meet-up with Putin did little to dispel that theory. The two were filmed, in what has been described as a (mostly inaudible) "painfully forced PR show," conversing jovially on Putin's yacht near Sochi, as they watched dolphins and had a meal with Lukashenko's son.
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
-
Quincy Jones, music icon, is dead at 91Speed Read The legendary producer is perhaps best known as the architect behind Michael Jackson's 'Thriller'
-
Sarah Rainsford shares the best books to explain Vladimir Putin's RussiaThe Week Recommends The correspondent picks works by Anna Politkovskaya, Catherine Belton and more
-
OJ Simpson, star athlete tried for murder, dead at 76Speed Read The former football hero and murder suspect lost his battle with cancer
-
Momofuku's 'Chili Crunch' trademark uproarSpeed Read The company's attempt to own the sole rights has prompted backlash
-
Kevin Hart awarded Mark Twain PrizeSpeed Read He is the 25th recipient of the prestigious comedy prize
-
Is Downton Abbey set to return for a final film?Speed Read Imelda Staunton reveals that a third movie may be in the pipeline
-
The Master and Margarita: the new adaptation causing consternation at the KremlinWhy Everyone's Talking About Pro-Putin groups have called for the film's director to be charged as a terrorist
-
'Oppenheimer' sweeps Oscars with 7 winsspeed read The film won best picture, best director (Christopher Nolan) and best actor (Cillian Murphy)
