14 DAY TRIAL // The scandal regarding the Bolivian presidential aircraft which had been refused passage through the airspace of western European countries rages on as Spain refuses to grant him permission to pass.
According to reports, Evo Morales has refused a request from Spanish authorities to inspect his plane in Vienna. As a reaction to his refusal, Spanish airspace continues to remain closed for Morales.
Despite the statement of Austrian president that the flight route of his Bolivian counterpart was going to be “normal” and that Spain has authorized his passage, it seems that tensions continue to grow.
As Spain, Portugal and France are afraid that Snowden might be on board of the plane, the Austrian foreign ministry spokesperson said they were convinced that the NSA whistleblower would not be joining Evo Morales.
US president Barack Obama has said this past week that he would not try to stop Snowden’s flight from reaching its destination, but it appears that he is, at the very least, not acting directly.
It remains unknown why the authorities of the countries that closed their airspace to the Bolivian presidential aircraft believe that Snowden is on board.
Whether the NSA whistleblower is on the plane or not cannot be confirmed, since access to the plane has been restricted.
Snowden has requested political asylum in 18 more countries, among which Bolivia and Venezuela. Since both presidents of these countries have been in Russia for a meeting this week, it was assumed that either of them could make an on-the-spot decision regarding the asylum.
Snowden has been on the run for several weeks now, after he revealed top secret documents from the NSA, regarding the collective spying of people all over the world.
He had originally fled to Hong Kong, but left for Russia on June 23. He’s been in the transit area of a Moscow airport ever since.