After weeks of denial, Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko admitted that a small Swedish plane entered his country's airspace July 4, dropping hundreds of teddy bears on tiny black parachutes, the Belta news agency reports.

The teddy bears carried signs reading, "Belarus freedom" and "We support the Belarus struggle for free speech."

The toy bears drifted down over the town of Ivyanets, outside of Minsik, The Local, a Swedish news agency reports.

The stunt was mounted pro bono by a Swedish ad agency on behalf of the pro-democracy group Charter 97.

The plane was flown from neighboring Lithuania, The Local says.

In a note it called a "legal warning and disclaimer" on its website, Studio Total acknowledges that violating military space "of a dictatorship" involves "real danger."

It says:

The entire campaign was paid for by Studio Total. The airplane we flew in was our own, and we piloted it ourself. We DO NOT support breaking of international law. But when it really comes down to it, the only law you should follow is your heart.

Belarusian air defense forces earlier denied that a Swedish plane had overflown the country and called the story a provcation, Russia's Ria Novosti news agency reports.

"How can you explain that a light aircraft, which not only crossed the border, but also with impunity, invaded the territory of the Republic of Belarus? It is first and foremost a matter of the safety of our citizens," Lukashenko said at meeting Thursday on the modernization of the armed forces, according to news agency Interfax.

He said the perpetrators would be punished, as well as some members of the military, border and security forces who allowed the plane to fly unchallenged.

Belarusian authorities continue to hold a young independent Belarusian journalist, Anton Suryapin, who was arrested for posting pictures of the teddy bears, some dangling from trees, on the Internet, the BBC reports.

Lukashenko has been president of the former Soviet republic since 1994. In 2005, Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice described Belarus as "the last true remaining dictatorship in the heart of Europe."