Refuses To Open Its Airspace To Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov, Bulgaria: Enters EU Sanctions List

Menlu Russia Sergei Lavrov. (Wikimedia Commons/Press Service of the President of the Russian Federation)

JAKARTA - Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov was unable to make a visit to Serbia, because countries bordering the country are reluctant to open their airspace.

One of the countries that refused is Bulgaria, basing its rejection on sanctions from the European Union on Foreign Minister Lavrov, based on decrees from 2014 to the most recent last February.

"The Bulgarian Ministry of Foreign Affairs issued a note on June 1, 2022, refusing to grant diplomatic permission for the flight of [Russian] Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov to cross Bulgarian airspace," the ministry said in a statement.

"The move is based on EU sanctions against Russia, especially the decision made by the Bulgarian Ministry of Foreign Affairs. The Council of the European Union on 31 July 2014, in addition to the decision of 25 February 2022, which listed Sergei Lavrov at number 670 in the list of individuals and entities subject to sanctions by the European Union in accordance with Regulation 269/2014," the statement continued.

It is known, Foreign Minister Lavrov was due to visit Serbia on June 6-7. Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova confirmed that Serbia's neighboring countries had closed their airspace to its planes.

"Countries bordering Serbia have closed the only air route for Sergei Lavrov's plane that will depart for Serbia. The Russian delegation is scheduled to hold talks in Belgrade, while EU and NATO member states have closed their airspace," Zakharova said. in the live broadcast of the Italian television channel La7 on Sunday evening.

Serbia, which has close cultural ties to Russia, has fended off pressure to take sides over Russia's invasion of Ukraine, but has not joined the western sanctions against Moscow.

President Vladimir Putin and his counterpart President Aleksandar Vucic agreed last month that Russia will continue to supply natural gas to Serbia, while other countries have been stopped for refusing to pay for Russian gas in rubles.