China calls for restraint after Zelenskyy warns of danger to flights using Russian airspace

China called for “calm and restraint” after Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy warned airlines using Russian airspace that it would become “completely unsafe.” Several Chinese carriers continue to fly over Russia on international routes.

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Calm and restraint.

Asked whether Beijing had received a warning from Ukrainian authorities and whether it would take action over the risks to commercial flights, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Guo Jiakun said dialogue and negotiation remained the only viable way to resolve the Ukraine crisis. He urged all sides to remain calm and exercise restraint.

Zelenskyy issued his warning on Monday, citing the increasing number of Ukrainian drone and missile attacks on military targets inside Russia. He said Ukraine did not threaten civil aviation or any aircraft, and that its Foreign Ministry would provide other countries and international organizations with information about the risks of flying over Russia.

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Dialogue and negotiation are the only viable way to resolve the Ukraine crisis.

Airlines from the European Union, the United States and other countries that imposed sanctions on Moscow do not use Russian airspace. Companies from countries that did not join those restrictions, including China, still use it on some routes.

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Completely unsafe.

Russian President Vladimir Putin described Zelenskyy’s remarks as an “appeal to state terrorism” and warned that Moscow would respond if the attacks led to a tragedy. Former Russian President Dmitry Medvedev, now deputy chairman of the country’s Security Council, said Moscow would target Ukraine’s “sponsors of terrorism” if Zelenskyy carried out his threat. He identified them as Western, mainly European, heads of state who “usually travel to Kyiv by train.”

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An appeal to state terrorism.