Ukraine is reiterating its call for international airlines to refrain from flying over Russian territory due to the ongoing hostilities, Spokesperson for the Ukrainian Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MFA) Heorhiy Tykhy said.
"We reiterate our call to avoid Russian airspace, because it is truly not safe. Russia is behaving in a completely irresponsible manner; despite having launched a full-scale war against Ukraine, possessing hundreds and thousands of missiles and drones in its airspace – including its own that are flying here to bomb civilians – as well as Ukrainian assets responding to this terror, it still refuses to close its airspace. This is irresponsible behavior that truly puts civil aviation and people's lives at risk," Tykhy said at a press conference in Kyiv on Wednesday.
That is precisely why, he explained, Ukraine has taken it upon itself to warn airlines about the dangers of flying in Russian airspace.
"We see that the activity is decreasing; our appeal to the ICAO has reached both member states and airlines. It is their responsibility to heed this call and reduce or completely cease any activity in Russian airspace," Tykhy said.
As previously reported, in an evening video address on September 1, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said Ukraine is warning every airline that uses Russian airspace, as well as anyone using key Russian airports, that Russian airspace is becoming completely unsafe, while Ukraine poses no threat to civil aviation. The president noted that although the Russian authorities are not reporting this as they should, "the Russian sky will de facto be closed: the war unleashed by Russia is closing its own sky."
On the same day, Head of the President's Office of Ukraine Kyrylo Budanov backed Zelenskyy and stated: "Russian airspace is no longer safe. This is a new reality, about which we are officially warning international airlines, insurers, and partners."
