Belarus Still Detaining Two Other Americans Officials Fail To Fully Apologize For Killing Two U.S. Balloonists

Belarussian officials tried to explain Thursday why two American balloonists had been shot down and killed during an international race, but they continued to detain two other American pilots.

“A tragedy has occurred, and to a certain extent, we are to blame,” First Deputy Foreign Minister Valery Tzepkalo told a news conference.

At the White House on Thursday, presidential spokesman Mike McCurry complained that even though the Belarussian government has promised to cooperate, “we have not received an adequate explanation” of why the balloon was shot down.

“There were two innocent people who lost their lives through what may have been a tragic mistake, but it seems to be have been more deliberate than that,” he said.

The slain men, Alan Fraenckel, 55, and John Stuart-Jervis, 68, were sailing over rural western Belarus on Tuesday when a Belarussian helicopter opened fire from 100 yards away. They and their balloon plunged a mile and a half.

Meanwhile, two other American balloonists forced down by the Belarussian military Tuesday night are being held without explanation.

“I wouldn’t say they are under arrest,” said Janet Demiray, a U.S. Embassy spokeswoman. “But they aren’t free to go.”

Yet another balloon carrying two Americans also was forced to land that night, but the crew was released and sent to Poland.

Reproached by Washington for its initial silence about the unprecedented attack, Belarus formally expressed regret Thursday over the killing.

But officials stopped short of a full apology and said blame should be shared by race organizers and the balloonists themselves.

Tzepkalo said the balloonists ignored repeated warnings as their craft approached the Osovtsy military air base.

Ruth Ludwig of the Balloon Federation of America said the doomed crew’s radio might have run out of batteries.

“It wasn’t an accident; it was murder, senseless slaughter,” she said.

The balloon competition has no set course; the team that stays longest in the air and travels farthest wins. It was won by a German team that stayed aloft for 92 hours and landed Wednesday in Latvia.