German Foreign Minister Heiko Maas on Tuesday said Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko will pay "a bitter price" for the "heinous" flight diversion that led to the arrest of a dissident on board. "Any dictator toying with such ideas must be made to understand that they will pay a bitter price," Maas told reporters in Berlin, a day after European Union leaders agreed to cut Europe's air links with Belarus and impose further economic sanctions. "Our goal has always been to hit Lukashenko and his power apparatus with these measures, not the civilian population, which is already suffering enough under this regime," he added. The forced landing of a Ryanair flight from Athens to Vilnius on Sunday and the arrests of opposition journalist Roman Protasevich and his girlfriend have sparked calls for tough action against longtime Belarusian leader Lukashenko. Maas said he would discuss the planned measures with fellow EU foreign ministers at talks in Lisbon later this week. He said the EU was also "coordinating closely" with the United States. The German minister called the forced landing of the flight a "heinous act" that endangered the lives of more than 170 people. "This was an attack on aviation security, on press freedom, and on the European citizens on board," Maas said. mfp/fec/spm