Ruptly
"Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico said on Sunday that Lithuania and Latvia would refuse to grant overflight clearance for his aircraft en route to Moscow for the Victory Day commemorations on May 9. "Lithuania and Latvia have already informed us that they will not allow us to fly over their territory on our flight to Moscow. Member states of the European Union won't even allow the Prime Minister of another European Union member state to fly over their territory," Fico said. "I will definitely find another route, just as I did last year when Estonia torpedoed us. The attitude of the Baltic states towards the Second World War cannot stop me from giving thanks for the liberation of Slovakia," he added. It comes after several European Union member states have imposed broad restrictions on airspace access since 2022, following the escalation of the conflict in Ukraine. The European Union introduced coordinated measures banning Russian aircraft and state-linked flights from entering EU airspace. The Baltic states, including Lithuania, Latvia, and Estonia, have maintained some of the strictest aviation restrictions in the region. They have repeatedly denied overflight permissions for flights seen as 'politically sensitive', citing alignment with EU sanctions policy. These measures have been reinforced through national aviation authorities and coordinated EU sanctions frameworks. Relations between some EU member states and the Baltic states have also been strained over different readings of the Second World War, particularly the Soviet role in defeating Nazi Germany. Baltic governments describe the Soviet period as an occupation, while Moscow and some regional actors stress the Red Army's role in the defeat of Nazi Germany."
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