Canada’s Transport Minister Omar Alghabra and Foreign Affairs Minister Melanie Joly announced Sunday that the government has closed airspace to all Russian air operators as a follow-up to measures already taken to sanction Russia following its invasion of Ukraine.
The measure covers the operation of Russian-owned, chartered, or Russian-operated aircraft in Canadian airspace, including airspace over Canada’s territorial waters.
“All of Canada is united in its outrage over President Putin’s aggression against Ukraine. In response, we have closed Canadian airspace to aircraft owned or operated by Russia. The Government of Canada condemns Russia’s aggressive actions and we will continue to take steps to support Ukraine,” Alghabra commented.
For his part, Joly said that “Canada will continue to do all it can against the aggression of the Russian regime. We stand united with our allies in our unwavering support for Ukraine and are working to end this unprovoked war.”
Canada thus became the first country on the American continent to take a measure similar to that already put in place by almost a dozen European countries.
“We will hold Russia accountable for its unprovoked attacks against Ukraine,” transport minister Omar Alghabra wrote in a Twitter post.
See also: European Union closes its airspace to Russian aircraft
Transport Canada is the department within the Government of Canada responsible for developing regulations, policies, and services of road, rail, marine, and air transportation in the country. It is part of the Transportation, Infrastructure, and Communities (TIC) portfolio. The current Minister of Transport is Omar Alghabra. Headquarters are based in Ottawa, Ontario
