An exception for Lavrov: Bulgaria to temporarily open airspace to Russian planes
Kyiv • UNN
Bulgaria has allowed the plane of Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov to enter its airspace to attend an OSCE meeting in North Macedonia, despite EU sanctions.
Despite the "closed skies" for Russian aviation, Bulgaria will allow the plane of Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov to enter its airspace, according to a statement by the Bulgarian Foreign Ministry, UNN reports.
Details
The country will allow the Russian plane to fly over so that the diplomat can take part in the OSCE meeting in North Macedonia.
Bulgaria has authorized the flight of the Special Aviation Unit "Russia" through the airspace of the Republic of Bulgaria to transport a delegation to participate in an international forum
It is noted that the Russian Foreign Minister received a request for diplomatic permission to fly from North Macedonia, the OSCE chair and organizer of the 30th meeting of the OSCE Ministerial Council. The permit is temporary and will be valid for three hours up to 72 hours after the scheduled date and time of the flight.
Addendum
The Bulgarian Foreign Ministry emphasizes that this permit is granted for Lavrov's participation in the OSCE Ministerial Council meeting in Skopje and falls under the exceptions to the EU sanctions regime.
This permission does not apply to members of his delegation, who are also sanctioned persons under current EU legislation, as explicitly stated in the note of response from the Bulgarian side
Clarification
After the full-scale invasion of Ukraine , the Ministry of Transport of Bulgaria, on February 26, 2022, decided to close the airspace for Russian airlines due to the Russian aggression against Ukraine. [Last year
Last year
Bulgaria, North Macedonia and Montenegro closed their airspace for the plane of Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov when he was planning a visit to Serbia.
