Ukraine bans flights from Russian airlines

Ukraine will ban Russian airlines from flying into the country as part of war sanctions over their neighbour’s support for rebels in the east.

Kiev said that the sanctions would commence on 25 October and would include major Russian airlines Aeroflot and Transaero.

A Ukrainian government website quoted Prime Minister Arseny Yatseniuk as saying that “Russian planes with the Russian tricolor have no business in Ukrainian airports”.

He added that any Russian planes carrying military hardware or troops have also been banned from flying over Ukrainian territory.

Moreover, Kiev has also banned Ukrainian government companies from using Russian software, particularly from the Russian anti-virus giant Kaspersky Lab.  

Moscow condemned the move as ”another act of madness”, pledging a firm response. Aeroflot said that Ukraine had not yet formally notified the company of its decision.

“Only when and if Aeroflot receives official notification from the aviation authorities of Ukraine that flights have been cancelled will the company inform passengers and explain the rules on ticket reimbursement,” it said in a statement.

In a separate development, Ukraine and Russia have reached an agreement on the supply of natural gas to Kiev for the coming winter, following months of tough negotiations.

However, the deal – brokered by the European Union – requires “further procedures” before it can be signed. Past gas disputes between the two countries have led to interruptions in supply and have caused major disruptions in shipments of Russian gas to EU countries.

Around 8.000 people have been killed since fighting broke out in Ukraine in April 2014. Ukraine and the West accuse Russia of arming Ukrainian separatists and of sending its troops to the eastern Donetsk and Luhansk regions, claims that Moscow has denied.

The EU and the US have imposed economic sanctions against top Russian officials and supporters of their president Vladimir Putin. A ceasefire in eastern Ukraine has been holding for the past two weeks, although there have been reports of occasional shelling.