Austrian Foreign Ministry summons Belarusian Ambassador over Ryanair incident

Vienna, May 26 (Sputnik) The Austrian Ministry of Foreign Affairs told Sputnik on Wednesday that it had summoned Belarusian Ambassador Andrei Dapkiunas to express protest over the Minsk-initiated emergency landing of a Ryanair plane that led to the arrest of an opposition journalist.
“Yesterday, on Tuesday, the Austrian foreign ministry expressed to the Belarusian ambassador in Vienna a resolute protest against the actions of the Belarusian authorities during a personal conversation,” the ministry said.
The ministry slammed the forced landing as a grave interference in international air traffic and demanded the immediate release of Roman Protasevich, a co-founder of a Telegram channel that directed protests in Belarus, and other political prisoners.
“The incident must be investigated in a quick, comprehensive and, above all, independent manner,” the Austrian ministry added.