Ukraine International Airlines (UIA, Kyiv) has canceled its flights for the period from March 12 to March 17, 2014 inclusively due to the fact that Simferopol International Airport has announced that flights from Kyiv to Simferopol and from Simferopol to Kyiv will not be serviced, the airline's press service has reported.

The press service said that in the period from March 12 to March 17, UIAA canceled PS061 and PS065 flights Kyiv-Simferopol, PS062 and PS064 flights Simferopol-Kyiv due to the reasons that do not depend on the airline.

"Such discriminative measures by Simferopol airport result in inconveniences to hundreds of passengers – both Ukrainian citizens and foreigners. The stoppage of regular air communications between Kyiv and Crimea undermines the image of Ukraine and Crimea, and causes serious economic damage to the UIA and the Simferopol airport," UIA Executive Vice-President Serhiy Fomenko said.

UIA expressed hope that all restrictions on the performance of flights will be lifted. This will allow the resumption of flights from March 18, it said.

Ukrainian Infrastructure Minister Maksym Burbak earlier said that the Simferopol airport is closed due to the impossibility of ensuring the safety of flights from/to the airport.

According to the online panel at the airport, it still plans to service departure and arrival flights to/from Moscow. At present, flights from/to Kyiv and Istanbul are canceled, while flights from/to Moscow are not canceled.

Earlier First Deputy Prime Minister of Crimea Rustam Temirgaliyev told Interfax that Crimean authorities partially restricted arrivals of aircraft to the Simferopol airport to avoid interference of provocateurs to the territory of Crimea.

Crimean self-defense forces took the Crimean department of the state enterprise UkSATSE, which hindered the arrival of Tatarstan President Rustam Minnikhanov. He said that at present, the Crimean department of UkSATSE is managed by the Council of Ministers of Crimea.

The Crimean department of UkSATSE does not give any comments.

The Crimean department of UkSATSE neither confirmed not denied information that the restrictions could be lifted on March 17.