Sandu on the Protasevich Arrest: Serious Things Are Happening in Belarus

President Maia Sandu made the first public statement regarding the detention of Belarusian opposition leader Roman Protasevich and his girlfriend, Russian woman Sofia Sapega. Maia Sandu considers this situation alarming and expresses concern, agora.md reported “What is happening in Belarus is very serious, and we are concerned about the fate of the people who were unjustly imprisoned. We hope that the situation will improve, people will be released and human rights will be respected,” said Maia Sandu on the air of the TV8 program. Recall that on May 23, the founder of the NEXTA Telegram channel Roman Protasevich was detained by Belarusian law enforcement agencies after an emergency landing of the plane of the Irish airline Ryanair, en route from Athens to Vilnius. It was also reported about the detention of his girlfriend, Russian woman Sofia Sapega. In Belarus, Protasevich is accused of several articles, including organizing mass riots. Telegram channel NEXTA has been declared extremist by the Belarusian authorities.