MOSCOW (Sputnik) – Russian authorities will be forced to take equal measures against Ukraine after Kiev decided to close its airspace to Russian commercial airlines, Russian Transport Minister Maxim Sokolov said Friday.
“Today we found out through the media that [Ukrainian Prime Minister Arseniy] Yatsenyuk’s government plans to ban flights provided by Aeroflot and Transaero into Ukraine. If these plans are carried out with actual documents prepared by Ukraine’s air authorities of closing airspace for Russian companies, then the Russian authorities will be forced to take equal measures,” Sokolov told journalists.
“We understand that this will basically lead to a halt in air transportation between the two countries,” Sokolov added.
Aeroflot said it has yet to be officially notified of Ukraine's flight ban, vowing to refund passengers the cost of their tickets should it be forced to cancel flights.
