Ukraine officially warns International Civil Aviation Organization that "Russian skies are not safe"
Ukrainian Infrastructure Minister Mykola Kalashnik warned the Secretary-General of the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO), Juan Carlos Salazar Gomez, that flying in Russian airspace is dangerous.
Ukraine has sent an official warning to the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) that Russian airspace is unsafe.
According to a letter from Kalashnik to the ICAO Secretary General, which was seen by Zerkalo Nedeli, Ukraine closed its airspace in February 2022, but Russia ignored the dangers, which led to a number of air crashes.
Kalashnik noted that Ukraine, exercising its inalienable right to self-defense under Article 51 of the UN Charter, "is obliged to give an adequate response to Russian terrorist airstrikes."
"We proceed from the understanding that the presence of civilian aircraft in Russian airspace against the backdrop of the escalation of tensions by Russia may pose an extremely high risk. Therefore, we consider it our legal and humanitarian duty to issue an impartial warning about the above-mentioned danger," the letter reads.
Kalashnik called on "aviation authorities, air navigation service providers and airlines" operating in Russia to take measures to ensure the safety of civil aviation. In particular, the issue of a complete ban on flights over Russia for ICAO members was raised.
Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andriy Sibiga confirmed that the country had officially notified the international organization that Russian skies were unsafe and called for a ban on flights.
"It is our responsible decision to inform ICAO, all airlines and governments, in order to encourage them to be careful, even if Russia refuses to fulfill its obligation to warn them. We want to prevent unexpected incidents," Sibiga wrote.
A day earlier, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky warned in his evening address that Russian skies were "not becoming safe" because "drones are appearing in Russian skies so often that it is necessary to reckon with them." "We warn our partners: the safe moment in Russian skies is over," he said.
Russian President Vladimir Putin responded by calling Zelensky's words "an incitement to state terrorism." The head of the Russian Transport Ministry said the country's aviation services would not allow "significant disruptions" in the activities of civil aviation.