Volodymyr Zelenskyy has said Russia\u2019s airspace is becoming unsafe for commercial airlines, as Vladimir Putin promised to step up strikes against Ukraine\u2019s energy facilities in the run-up to winter.<\/p>\n
The Ukrainian president said<\/a> there was no intention to directly threaten civilian flights, but the growing number of attack drones being flown into the country by Ukraine would have to be \u201ctaken into account\u201d by the aviation industry.<\/p>\n \u201cWe want to warn every airline that uses Russian airspace, every insurer, and everyone who still uses Russia\u2019s key airports: Russian airspace is becoming completely unsafe,\u201d he said in a statement.<\/p>\n A rapid escalation of Ukrainian military capability in the past few months has allowed the country\u2019s forces to strike locations deep inside Russia<\/a>.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n Reliable figures for the number of drone flights are hard to obtain but Ukraine is already capable of launching several hundred a day, and military sources say the country is chasing a target of 1,000 drones in an effort to hurt Russia\u2019s economy.<\/p>\n Ukraine\u2019s commercial airspace has been closed since the beginning of the full scale invasion in February 2022 because Russia has been able to strike targets throughout the country, making airports unsafe for civilians.<\/p>\n This year, Ukraine has begun bombing oil refineries and warehouses near Moscow and St Petersburg, as well as hitting military and industrial sites at ranges in excess of 2,000km (1,250 miles) from its border.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n Concerns about the safety of civilian aviation in the war zone linger. A Malaysian airlines plane was shot down as it flew over eastern Ukraine in July 2014<\/a> by Russian separatists operating a surface to air missile launcher. All 298 people onboard were killed.<\/p>\n Putin described Zelenskyy\u2019s remarks as \u201cstate terrorism\u201d, saying: \u201cNegotiations are not conducted with terrorists.\u201d<\/p>\n Giving one of his most detailed updates on the war, the Russian leader told a news conference that Moscow was preparing to step up its campaign bombing Ukraine\u2019s energy facilities this winter, aiming to knock out heating and electricity supplies.<\/p>\n \u201cThe Russian armed forces have been ordered to prepare and carry out mass strikes on Ukraine\u2019s energy facilities. They are striking us, and they will get a response,\u201d Putin told reporters after a two-day summit in Kyrgyzstan. \u201cI\u2019m not saying we\u2019ll collapse the economy there, but it\u2019s a serious challenge for them.\u201d<\/p>\n Putin at a news conference on Tuesday, where he gave one of his most details updates on the war. Photograph: Vyacheslav Prokofyev\/EPA<\/p>\n Asked whether Russia would strike British military facilities in the UK that produced weapons for Ukraine, Putin sidestepped the question, saying: \u201cThat\u2019s a military secret.\u201d<\/p>\n