Opinion
Belarus kidnapping sets a dangerous global precedent
The disturbing reality is that authoritarian countries are increasingly resorting to what Freedom House, a US-based pro-democracy organisation, calls in a report released in February, ‘transnational repression’.
Gideon RachmanColumnistThe “rules-based international order” is a dull phrase beloved by diplomats that can sound like a meaningless cliche. Boris Johnson, Britain’s Prime Minister, even briefly considered instructing his officials to stop using the term.
But if anyone doubts the need for a rules-based international order, they should consider what has just happened to Ryanair flight FR4978 from Greece to Lithuania. The plane was crossing Belarus when it was forced to land in Minsk – allowing the government there to detain Roman Protasevich, a prominent Belarusian journalist, who has chronicled the brutal repression in his home country.
Financial Times
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