Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy issued a stark warning to global airlines on Tuesday, urging them to steer clear of Russian airspace as Kyiv ramps up its long-range drone campaign against targets inside Russia.
“We want to warn every airline that uses Russian airspace, every insurer, and everyone who still uses Russia’s key airports: Russian airspace is becoming completely unsafe,” Zelenskyy said in his evening address.
The warning follows an escalation in Ukrainian drone strikes on Russian oil refineries and logistics hubs, part of Kyiv’s strategy to raise the costs of the war for Moscow. Zelenskyy said it was crucial that carriers flying into Moscow, St. Petersburg, and other major Russian destinations factor in the heightened risk.
He insisted civilian aviation would not be directly targeted, but added: “There will simply be drones in Russia’s skies on a scale that has to be taken into account.”
Most Western commercial airlines have avoided Russian airspace since Moscow launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022. However, some carriers from China and Gulf states—including Qatar and the United Arab Emirates—continue to fly over Russia.
Ukraine closed its own airspace to civilian aircraft shortly after the invasion began. Zelenskyy said Ukraine’s foreign ministry and other institutions would provide international organizations with full information about the dangers in Russian airspace, adding: “Drone-infested skies are no place for civilian aviation.”
Putin responds with ‘state terrorism’ charge
Russian President Vladimir Putin dismissed Zelenskyy’s comments as a declaration of “state terrorism,” speaking to reporters on Tuesday at the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation summit in Kyrgyzstan. Putin said the Kremlin would continue intensifying its own attacks on Ukraine and rejected any prospect of resuming peace talks, saying: “You don’t negotiate with terrorists.”
The exchange comes as Russia’s Defense Ministry said earlier in the week that it is planning “massive strikes” on Ukraine’s energy infrastructure, raising fears of another punishing winter campaign against the country’s power grid.
Russian forces have also stepped up missile strikes on Ukrainian cities as Kyiv grapples with a shortage of air defense equipment, according to the report.
Source: www.cnbc.com — https://www.cnbc.com/2026/09/02/ukraine-zelenskyy-airlines-russia-drone-war.html
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