MOSCOW, May 24 (Xinhua) -- The Kremlin said Monday that it wishes to refrain from supporting or condemning anyone involved in the recent Ryanair diversion incident, calling for a calm and sober assessment of the event.
"For now, we need to make a sober assessment of this incident with the aircraft. There are many contradictory statements and we do not wish to participate in this race aimed at rashly condemning or supporting someone," the RIA Novosti news agency reported, citing Kremlin Spokesman Dmitry Peskov.
He said there was no information on possible communication between the Belarusian and Russian sides in relation to the incident and called for avoiding analyzing what political consequences the event could have for Russia.
Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said Monday it was necessary to take into account all the information that Belarus is willing to provide concerning the incident, according to a statement published by the Russian Foreign Ministry.
Lavrov advocated for a "reasonable" approach and said the Russian Embassy in Minsk has asked the Belarussian side to provide consular access to a Russian woman on the Ryanair flight.
The Irish airline Ryanair said that flight FR4978 from Athens to Vilnius was directed to an airport in Minsk on Sunday as crew on the plane had been alerted to a possible security threat by Belarusian authorities, adding that nothing untoward was found. Enditem
