U.S. and Germany to coordinate steps to respond to Ryanair incident

Secretary of State Antony J. Blinken hold talks with German Foreign Minister Heiko Maas, U.S. State Department spokesperson Ned Price said.

"Secretary Blinken and Foreign Minister Maas discussed coordination on next steps to respond to events in Belarus and relief efforts in Gaza, as well as the importance of revitalizing the NATO Alliance through an ambitious NATO 2030 process," the statement reads.

The talks followed Sunday’s incident when a Ryanair flight en route from Athens to Vilnius was forced to land at Minsk’s airport after a reported bomb threat. The plane landed safely and no bomb was found on board. Roman Protasevich, one of the co-founders of the Nexta Telegram channel, which was recognized as extremist in Belarus, was among the passengers. Protasevich, currently living in Lithuania and wanted in Belarus, was detained after the airliner had landed in the Belarusian capital. The plane left Minsk and continued on to Vilnius late on Sunday.