Japan and the European Union have tightened their respective sanctions on Russia, tightening bans on the country's aviation industry and operations.
The Japanese Ministry of Foreign Affairs said in a communique on June 21, 2024, that its new measures target two aircraft manufacturers, Ilyushin Design Bureau and Tupolev Design Bureau. Both are subsidiaries of UAC United Aircraft Corporation - itself a unit of state-owned industrial holding Rostec - active in both military and civilian aircraft manufacturing.
Tokyo also designated AK Alrosa, a stock-listed diamond mining giant, which owns Alrosa Aviakompania. The airline operates two B737-700s and three B737-800s on scheduled flights predominantly serving the mining towns of Mirnyj and Polyarnyj, as well as Novosibirsk.
Meanwhile, the Council of the European Union has agreed on a fourteenth package of sanctions on Russia that ramps up pressure on its nationals travelling to, from, or over Europe, seemingly targeting mainly business jet flights. The extended ban against using EU airspace will cover any non-scheduled flight "where a Russian natural or legal person, entity or body, is in a position to effectively determine the place or time for its take-off or landing to reach, for instance, a holiday destination or a business meeting".
Operators of non-scheduled flights will also have to provide more information to the respective EU member state authorities about the ownership of the aircraft and the identity of the passengers.
Russian airlines and Russian-registered aircraft are already banned from operating in EU airspace.
