h.ua

Ukraine notifies ICAO that Russian airspace is unsafe for civil aviation, calls for flight ban

Updated 2 September 2026

Ukraine officially informed the International Civil Aviation Organization that Russia's airspace is unsafe for civil aviation due to increased military activity, calling on airlines and governments to avoid flights over Russian territory. Foreign Minister Andriy Sybiha announced the notification on September 2, citing Ukraine's right to self-defense under Article 51 of the UN Charter, while Infrastructure Minister Mykola Kalashnyk separately wrote to ICAO seeking a complete ban on civil flights over Russia. The warning prompted flight cancellations by Turkish carriers and a sharp drop in Russian airline shares, and drew a sharp response from President Vladimir Putin, who called the statement a "claim of state terrorism."

Why it matters

The notification escalates Ukraine's campaign to make Russian territory feel the consequences of the war by targeting civil aviation safety. By formalizing its position at an international regulatory body, Ukraine potentially shapes how airlines, insurers, and governments approach flights over Russia. The warning has already had operational effects: Turkish carriers cancelled flights and shares of Russian airlines, including Aeroflot, fell more than 5%. It also triggered a sharp response from Putin, who characterized the statement as a "claim of state terrorism" and threatened retaliation.

What happened

On September 2, Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andriy Sybiha announced via a post on X that Ukraine had officially informed the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) that Russia's airspace is unsafe for civil aviation due to increased military activity. Ukraine called on airlines and governments to avoid flights over Russian territory, citing its right to self-defense under Article 51 of the UN Charter. Sybiha stated that Russia deliberately ignores the threats arising from its aggression against Ukraine, which have already led to several incidents in past years. The notification followed President Volodymyr Zelensky's statement the previous evening, September 1, that Russian airspace is becoming fully unsafe for civil aviation. Zelensky called on airlines, insurers, and other market participants to take these risks into account when flying to Russia, attributing the danger to activity by Ukrainian drones and missiles responding to Russian aggression. Separately, Infrastructure Minister Mykola Kalashnyk sent a letter to ICAO Secretary General Juan Carlos Salazar Gomez calling for a complete ban on civil aviation flights over Russia. Kalashnyk cited aggressive use of electronic warfare and GPS spoofing over the Baltic states and Russia that has affected tens of thousands of flights by Ryanair, Wizz Air, and Finnair. He pointed to a rapid growth in fatalities from civil aviation crashes over Russia and to "closed" investigations and Rosaviatsia's non-compliance with international standards as a direct threat to passenger lives and global aviation infrastructure. Kalashnyk noted that Ukraine closed its own airspace on the night of February 24, 2022, at the start of the full-scale invasion. The warning had immediate market and operational effects. Shares of Russian airlines, including Aeroflot, fell more than 5% after Zelensky's statement. Turkish airlines cancelled flights between Moscow and Turkey, with Pegasus cancelling flight PC1456 from Bodrum to Moscow scheduled for 00:05 on the night of September 2, telling passengers that all Turkish airlines were cancelling flights due to the "airspace situation." Pegasus stated on its Facebook page that the cancellations were due to "technical reasons" and that from September 2 flights would operate according to schedule. Additional Pegasus flights at Moscow's Vnukovo airport were marked as cancelled, including two to Istanbul, one to Bodrum, and one to Dalaman. During the night and morning of September 2, Turkish Airlines cancelled at least two flights to Istanbul, Nesma Airlines cancelled a flight to Sharm el-Sheikh, and Shirak Avia cancelled a flight to Yerevan. Vnukovo airport imposed flight restrictions on the night of September 2 for security reasons. President Vladimir Putin responded sharply, calling Zelensky's statement a "claim of state terrorism" and threatening that Russia would find how to respond. Putin made the remarks during a press conference on the sidelines of the SCO summit in Bishkek on September 1. As of the time of reporting, ICAO had not made any official statements on its platforms. Separately, Zelensky confirmed that Ukraine, at the request of the US, did not strike Moscow and Saint Petersburg on August 25–27, during which period CIA Director Ratcliffe flew to the Russian capital. Zelensky also said Ukraine is ready, at partners' request, to pause strikes on targets in Russia in light of planned meetings in Russia on ending the war.

How Ukrainian sources describe it

Ukrainian sources center Ukrainian officials (Foreign Minister Sybiha, Infrastructure Minister Kalashnyk, President Zelensky) as responsible actors exercising a legitimate right to self-defense. Coverage emphasizes concrete aviation-safety grounds, citing past GPS spoofing and electronic warfare incidents, closed Russian investigations, and non-compliance by Rosaviatsia. Several outlets use the framing "war is returning to Russia" to underscore the consequences of Russian aggression now reaching Russian territory. Ukrainian reporting treats the ICAO notification as a formal, defensible diplomatic step rather than a threat.

Where reporting differs

Sources differ on whether Ukraine has actually begun a specific large-scale drone operation targeting Moscow airports: The Atlantic reported that Zelensky's remarks indicated the start of operation "M&M's," a plan allegedly frozen after the dismissal of former Defense Minister Mykhailo Fedorov, while the Office of the President of Ukraine called information about the preparation of such an operation "complete nonsense." Sources also differ in framing of Ukraine's notification: Putin described Zelensky's statement as a "claim of state terrorism," whereas Ukrainian officials framed it as a responsible exercise of the right to self-defense and a warning grounded in real aviation risks.

Background

On September 1, President Zelensky publicly stated that Russian airspace is becoming fully unsafe for civil aviation, citing Ukrainian drones and missiles responding to Russian aggression. Foreign Minister Andriy Sybiha publicly announced Ukraine's notification to ICAO on September 2 via a post on X. Infrastructure Minister Mykola Kalashnyk separately wrote to ICAO Secretary General Juan Carlos Salazar Gomez calling for a complete ban on civil aviation flights over Russia, citing electronic warfare, GPS spoofing incidents over the Baltic states and Russia, and concerns about Rosaviatsia's investigation practices. Ukraine closed its own airspace at the start of the full-scale invasion on February 24, 2022, a precedent Ukraine points to in justifying its current actions. Putin made his "state terrorism" remarks at a press conference during the SCO summit in Bishkek on September 1. Pegasus cancelled specific flights between Turkey and Moscow on the night of September 2, attributing cancellations to "technical reasons" and indicating resumption from September 2; additional Turkish and other airlines' flights to/from Vnukovo were cancelled during the night and morning of September 2, and Vnukovo imposed flight restrictions for security reasons. According to The Atlantic, a Ukrainian plan called "M&M's" reportedly envisioned launching up to 1,000 small UAVs per day toward Moscow airports to paralyze operations; the Office of the President of Ukraine called this reporting "complete nonsense."

Sources