The Buzz | NATO restricts headquarters access or Belarus officials

The NATO military alliance is restricting access to its headquarters for a group of Belarus officials in the wake of Minsk’s decision to divert a Ryanair passenger plane to arrest a dissident journalist earlier this month.
“We have decided to restrict the access of Belarusian personnel to the NATO headquarters based on our assessment of security measures at the headquarters,” NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg told reporters yesterday.
The move is expected to involve about five officials. They will still be able to enter NATO’s sprawling headquarters complex in Brussels but only as visitors, depriving them of access to some areas.
NATO ambassadors said last week that the “unacceptable act seriously violated the norms governing civil aviation and endangered the lives of the passengers and crew.”
Stoltenberg has branded the Belarus move “a state hijacking.”