Zelenskyy: Airlines have begun canceling flights to Russia

Several airlines have begun canceling flights to Russian airports after Ukraine warned that the country’s airspace had become dangerous, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said.

“We are receiving reports that after we announced the objectively existing drone threat in Russian airspace, the first airlines began canceling flights to Russian airports,” Zelenskyy said. He called the move a logical response to conditions created by the war, which he said Russian President Vladimir Putin refuses to end.

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We are receiving reports that after we announced the objectively existing drone threat in Russian airspace, the first airlines began canceling flights to Russian airports.

“We must protect people’s lives,” Zelenskyy said. He added that Ukraine had officially informed international organizations and its partners about what it described as the real situation in Russian airspace.

Zelenskyy warned airlines on Sept. 1 that Russian airspace was becoming dangerous. The following day, Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha said Ukraine had formally notified the International Civil Aviation Organization that increased military activity made the airspace hazardous for civilian aviation. He urged airlines to avoid it.

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We must protect people’s lives.