Canada closes airspace to Russian carriers as Ukraine crisis enters its fourth day

Amid the rising tensions between Russia and Ukraine, Canada has closed its airspace to Russian aircraft operators effective immediately, says Transport Minister Omar Alghabra.

Alghabra made the announcement of closing the airspace to Russian aircraft in a tweet on Sunday. It comes at a time when several other European countries have also made similar announcements.

Russian-owned aircraft are banned from the airspace above Germany, the U.K., Italy, the Baltic states and others. Those policies leave much of European airspace closed to Russian planes, reported CBC.

Notably, Russia's flagship carrier Aeroflot operates multiple flights per day through Canadian airspace en route to the U.S. and beyond.

According to CBC News, Russia has responded by banning commercial flights from the U.K., Poland, Bulgaria and the Czech Republic.

Following the lead of other countries, Germany will also close its airspace for the Russian planes to extend its support to Ukraine against Russia's ongoing military operations, said a media report.

In the early hours on Thursday, Russia launched a special military operation in the Donbas region after recognition of Ukraine's breakaway regions - Donetsk and Luhansk - as independent identities.

The Western countries have strongly condemned the Russian military operation and boosted the sanctions pressure on Moscow.

( With inputs from ANI )