Russia's Federal Air Transport Agency, Rosaviatsia, has issued an operational notice stating that documents published by Ukraine regarding Russian airspace have no legal force.
The Russian aviation authority said Ukrainian officials issued an illegitimate notice claiming flight routes over Russia are unsafe, following statements by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy aimed at destabilising Russian civil aviation operations.
Rosaviatsia stated that the official documents issued by Kyiv violate the Convention on International Civil Aviation, adding that Russian civil aviation and its ground infrastructure continue to operate normally as scheduled.
Rosaviatsia, officially known as the Federal Agency for Air Transport, is the Russian government body responsible for managing civil aviation, air traffic, flight safety, and airport infrastructure across the Russian Federation. Operational aviation notices, known internationally as NOTAMs, are standard alerts issued through global telecommunication networks to inform pilots and airline operators of hazards, airspace restrictions, or operational changes.
Dispute Over International Aviation Rules
The federal agency said it is working alongside federal and regional authorities in Russia to maintain all necessary measures to ensure the safe use of national airspace.
The Convention on International Civil Aviation, signed in Chicago in 1944, forms the legal foundation of global civil flight. Administered by the International Civil Aviation Organization, a specialized agency of the United Nations, the treaty establishes that every sovereign state exercises complete and exclusive jurisdiction over the airspace above its territory.
Statements From Kyiv and Moscow
The announcement from Rosaviatsia follows earlier remarks by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, who called on international commercial airlines flying over Russia to stop operations in Russian airspace due to drone activity.
Commercial airlines rely on international flight corridors and real-time navigation advisories to manage flight paths safely, while civil aviation authorities maintain strict safety protocols regarding unmanned aircraft operating near civil air routes.
Zelenskyy said foreign ambassadors serving in Kyiv, the capital of Ukraine, and Moscow, the capital of Russia, needed to hear his warnings, adding that the sky over Russia would effectively be closed.
Russian President Vladimir Putin addressed the remarks, stating that the warnings issued by Zelenskyy represented an application for state terrorism.
Putin noted that Moscow would find an appropriate response if Kyiv attempted to carry out threats regarding the closure of Russian airspace.
