Finland has also decided to close its national airspace to Russian aircraft. That reports Minister of Transport Timo Harakka. Finland has a 1,300 kilometer border with Russia. Preparations are now being made to close the airspace to Russian aircraft, Harakka said. It is not clear when the measure will take effect.

Romania and Ireland also decided on Sunday to ban flights from Russia. Romania, where a NATO rapid response force has been set up, is closing its airspace to Russians and also canceling landing rights for airlines headquartered in Russia, a government spokesman said. There remain exceptions for humanitarian flights or in emergencies, it sounds.

In recent days, several European countries have already taken the same decision, most notably Bulgaria, the Czech Republic, Estonia, Lithuania, the UK, Germany and Poland. Russian planes flying to the west therefore have to make an increasingly larger detour. In response, Russia banned air traffic from those countries.

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* Origin: AVIATION ECHO HQ (2:292/854)