Russian diplomat confirms that Balkan states shut down their airspace for Foreign Minister Lavrov’s plane

Russian Foreign Ministry Spokeswoman Maria Zakharova has confirmed that the Balkan states closed down their airspace for Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov’s plane, which was set to arrive on 6 June in Serbia, the spokeswoman told Italy’s La7 TV channel.

“You’re talking about opening channels, using opportunities, but just an hour ago, the countries surrounding Serbia closed down the only air link for Sergey Lavrov’s plane, which was supposed to fly to Serbia. <…> The Russian delegation planned to hold talks in Belgrade, but the EU and NATO member states shut down their airspace. This is yet another closed channel of communication,” Zakharova said.

Earlier, Serbia’s Novosti newspaper stated that Bulgaria, Montenegro and North Macedonia all closed their airspaces for Lavrov’s jet.

Novosti published a scan of the respective document signed by the Montenegrin authorities. Russian Ambassador to Sofia Eleonora Mitrofanova confirmed that Bulgaria had closed its airspace for Lavrov’s plane.