Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy warned international airlines to reconsider flying through Russian airspace as Kyiv prepares to expand drone operations inside Russia, signaling a potentially significant escalation of Ukraine's long-range campaign while Moscow threatens intensified retaliation.
"Russian airspace is becoming completely unsafe," Zelenskyy said in a social-media post. While "Ukraine does not threaten civilian aviation as such," he said, there "will simply be drones in Russia's skies on a scale that has to be taken into account."
The warning suggests Ukraine intends to substantially increase the frequency or geographic reach of its drone operations against targets inside Russia. Kyiv has increasingly used long-range weapons to move the economic and military costs of the nearly five-year war deeper into Russian territory.
"Although the Russian authorities are not properly informing people about this, Russian airspace will effectively be closing - the war started by Russia is closing its skies," Zelenskyy said.
Ukraine intends to formally communicate its concerns to international bodies rather than limit the warning to airlines and travelers. "The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine and our other institutions will provide international organizations with full information about the dangers in Russian airspace. Drone-infested skies are no place for civilian aviation," Zelenskyy said.
Russian President Vladimir Putin characterized the Ukrainian remarks as "state terrorism" and reiterated that Moscow would intensify its own military operations. Russia has already threatened larger attacks on Ukrainian infrastructure in response to Kyiv's expanding campaign against targets inside Russia.
The escalating drone conflict adds another complication for civilian aviation. Zelenskyy's statement doesn't say Ukraine intends to target passenger aircraft; he explicitly said it doesn't. Instead, Kyiv's argument is that the expected volume of drones operating over Russia will itself create risks that commercial airlines should take into account.
The warning comes as The Economist reported that Putin increasingly views the outcome of the Ukraine war in personal as well as strategic terms. The Russian president has reportedly told allies that failure to achieve major objectives could threaten his own survival.
"They will hang me," Putin told allies at one point during the conflict, according to The Economist. The outlet reported that this perception is contributing to Putin's willingness to escalate as Russian forces struggle to produce decisive battlefield gains.
The Economist said the next phase of Russian escalation remains uncertain. Kyiv expects Moscow to expand missile and drone strikes during the winter, while Russia could also mobilize hundreds of thousands of additional troops for renewed ground operations.
At the same time, European governments are confronting what they describe as a separate Russian campaign conducted outside Ukraine through sabotage and other hybrid operations. Germany on Tuesday directly blamed Moscow for an attempted attack at Leipzig Airport on Aug. 4.
"The attempted attack at Leipzig Airport on 4 August fits the established pattern of Russian hybrid operations in Europe," German Interior Minister Alexander Dobrindt said Tuesday.
Dobrindt said Germany's investigation determined that "Russia is responsible for the hybrid attack," adding that Berlin expects further incidents. The supplied report doesn't provide details of the evidence underlying Germany's attribution or Moscow's response to the accusation.
German Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul announced retaliatory diplomatic measures, including plans to close the Russian consulate in Bonn and the Russian House in Berlin. Germany will also push for stronger sanctions against Moscow.
NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte backed Berlin's findings, saying the "evidence is clear" and welcoming Germany's response.
European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said she had spoken with German Chancellor Friedrich Merz and "assured him that the EU stands in full solidarity with Germany in the face of this attack by Russia."
