Russia bans UK airlines in tit-for-tat move

London, Feb 25 (PTI) In a retaliatory move over UK’s ban on Russian flag carrier Aeroflot, President Vladimir Putin on Friday imposed a ban on British airlines from landing in Russia or using its airspace.

Outlining the largest and most severe package of economic sanctions that Russia has ever seen in Parliament in response to Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine on Thursday, British Prime Minister Boris Johnson had announced a ban on Russia’s national airline Aeroflot from landing in the country. Russia responded with a tit-for-tat ban as a response to what Russia branded as “unfriendly decisions” by the UK aviation authorities. “I think that’s their retaliation for us yesterday banning Aeroflot from using and landing in the United Kingdom. That’s their tit-for-tat response,” said UK Defence Secretary Ben Wallace, in reference to the ban on British airlines.

British Airways, Britain’s flag carrier which operates several flights between London and Moscow, said in a statement that it was notifying customers on cancelled services and would offer full refunds. “We apologise for the inconvenience but this is clearly a matter beyond our control. We will continue to monitor the situation closely,” the airline said. Virgin Atlantic said flight paths had been adjusted for some of its services between the UK, India and Pakistan, extending the flying time on these routes by up to an hour. “The safety and security of our customers and people always comes first and we’re monitoring the situation in Ukraine and Russia extremely carefully following the escalation of conflict,” the airline said.

Meanwhile, the UK government has said it has no plans to deploy British troops to fight against Russia. UK Armed Forces Minister James Heappey told the House of Commons on Friday that 900 more British troops are being sent to eastern Europe to bolster support in adjoining regions but there will be no direct action.

Further contributions are under consideration. The UK is already the second largest contributor in terms of the surge forces that have come forward, second only to the US. But we’re clear we may need to provide more both in land, sea and air and we will do, if other NATO allies are unable to respond at the pace we could, the minister said.

British and NATO troops should not and must not play an active role in Ukraine. We must all be clear what the risks of miscalculation could be, and how existential that could very quickly become if people miscalculate and things escalate unnecessarily, he said. “The 1,000 troops that are on standby are there to support Hungary, Slovakia, Romania and Poland with the expected humanitarian challenges that they will face as people make their way out of Ukraine,” he added.

Earlier on Friday, Prime Minister Johnson once again spoke to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, pledging more support in the coming days. The Prime Minister assured President Zelenskyy that the world is united in its horror at what Putin is doing. He paid tribute to the bravery and heroism of the Ukrainian people in standing up to Russia’s campaign of violence, and expressed his deep condolences for those who have been killed, a Downing Street spokesperson said.

The Prime Minister committed to provide further UK support to Ukraine in the coming days as the people of Ukraine and the world continue to demonstrate that Putin cannot act with impunity, the spokesperson said. It follows a string of tough sanctions against Russian banks, businesses and Putin allies by the UK alongside the European Union and the US.

Sir Lindsay Hoyle, the Commons Speaker, has said that the UK Parliament is on standby to be recalled over the weekend if further sanctions are needed.