In June 2021, the council expanded its list of sanctioned individuals and companies subject to a travel ban and asset freeze. Belavia argued there was a “manifest error” in the council’s assessment of evidence and that it had not sufficiently proven the carrier was instructed by the Belarusian government to operate the flights.
However, the general court found that Belavia being entirely state-owned made it implausible for the airline’s activities to be independent of the Belarusian government’s wishes. The court noted that the Lukashenko regime supported the transport of third-party nationals to Belarus by backing visas and increasing demand for flights, thus supporting the regime.
Belavia also challenged the decision to maintain the sanctions from February 2023. The general court found the council had not sufficiently proven that flights from Istanbul to Minsk were facilitating illegal crossings of EU borders by that time.
However, the court ruled that the council did prove Belavia was still benefiting from the regime, justifying the continuation of sanctions. Notably, Lukashenko had agreed with Russian President Vladimir Putin on plans to open new routes for Belavia’s flights.
