Russia closes airspace to Ukraine airlines from Oct 25

Russia said it would close its airspace to Ukrainian airlines from October 25 in reprisal for a ban that Ukraine has slapped on Russian airlines.

Acting on instructions from Russian Prime Minister Dmitri Medvedev, the federal transport agency "has been asked to inform (Ukrainian) air companies providing flights to Russia that they will be forbidden to use Russian airspace from October 25," a transport ministry spokesman.

The measure is in response to a decision by the Ukrainian authorities last week that banned the Russian companies Aeroflot and Transaero from flying into the country, also from October 25. 

The decision was announced by the PM Yatsenyuk, whose government had just declared a technical default.

Russian transit flights will also be banned if the aircraft carry military personnel or dual-use goods, under the decision announced in Kiev.

On September 16, Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko expanded a list of sanctions against Russian companies and individuals, targeting 400 officials and 90 companies.