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| - Belarus opposition leader Svetlana Tikhanovskaya urged the EU on Friday to be "braver" and impose more sanctions against the Minsk regime after its forced grounding of a Ryanair flight. After meeting Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte in The Hague, Tikhanovskaya said measures being discussed by EU countries to target Belarusian economic sectors did not go far enough. "Now we have to be stronger, braver, and the European Union has to be stronger, braver in its resolutions and its decisions," the exiled Belarusian opposition chief told reporters. Tikhanovskaya called for a "new package of sanctions" specifically targeting those responsible for forcing down the flight last Sunday and then arresting the journalist, Roman Protasevich. Rutte promised to work with Tikhanovskaya on "whatever is needed" for future sanctions, but said the pressure on the regime of Belarus President Alexander Lukashenko was already showing. "The regime is clearly panicking. The fact that they did this with this aeroplane, which is completely unprecedented is evidence of the fact that they're panicking," Rutte told reporters. The Dutch PM said the EU would "hit them hardest where we can hit them which is of course in their stature, in their standing, in their wallet, everything." EU leaders have already agreed to ban Belarusian airlines from flying to the bloc and recommended EU-based carriers avoid Belarusian airspace. Diplomats from the 27 nations are now working on expanding sanctions on Belarus and are eyeing hitting key sectors of the economy to try to undercut Lukashenko's financial backing. dk/spm
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