Romania said Friday it had blocked a Moldova-bound plane carrying Russia's deputy prime minister Dmitry Rogozin from entering its airspace because of an EU travel ban linked to sanctions over the Ukraine crisis. "We confirm that the plane was not allowed to fly over Romanian airspace," the foreign ministry told AFP. The passenger aircraft, bound for Moldova's capital Chisinau, was forced to turn around and land in Minsk instead.
Bucharest acknowledged that the decision was made because of EU sanctions introduced in 2014 as the conflict surged between pro-Russian rebels and government forces in eastern Ukraine. Rogozin is among dozens of Russian and Ukrainian individuals to have been hit by the punitive measures, which include asset freezes and travel bans.
He is under attack for his role in the Russian annexation of Crimea in March 2014. After arriving in the Belarusian capital of Minsk after his flight was redirected, the minister vented his anger at Romania's decision, saying the blockade was an unprecedented move.