It matters not whether the person representing the threat was of any distinct nationality. Two facts seem to be prevalent in this situation: One, the pilot in command felt unsafe of the condition presented and dealt with it in an appropriate way, by refusing to take the flight. Two, the official represented a high level dignitary of a country at war, this represents a target of opportunity for the opposing side. By placing this person on a civilian flight one endangers the other passengers as possible collateral fatalities. The USAF and Navy have enough aircraft to shuttle this VIP, a guest of the country, to where he needed to go. This would also be a relevant training exercise for the crews who bore holes in the sky with their Beechjets and Lears.