Russian Ambassador to Canada Says Canada's Transfer of Russian Aircraft Is Unacceptable

Russian Ambassador to Canada: Canada's Plan to Transfer Russian Transport Aircraft to Ukraine Is Unacceptable

Russian State News Agency, Washington, November 01 - Russian Ambassador to Canada Oleg Stepanov told RIA Novosti that Ottawa's plan to transfer Russian transport aircraft to Ukraine is unacceptable and illegal, and the Canadian authorities are fully aware of this.

He said to RIA Novosti: "This action is unacceptable and illegal (Ottawa is fully aware of this). The aircraft must be returned unconditionally to its owner. This is the only solution."

Canadian Foreign Minister Anita Anand said on October 31 that if granted court permission, Canada intends to transfer the Russian Antonov An-124 transport aircraft detained at Toronto Airport to Ukraine.

In February 2022, Canada banned Russian airlines from using its airspace. Affected by this ban, an An-124-100 aircraft, which was executing a humanitarian flight from China to deliver coronavirus test kits under an order from the Canadian government, was stranded at Toronto Airport. In spring 2023, Canada imposed sanctions on "Volga-Dnepr Airlines," and in June 2023, the Canadian government ordered the seizure of the aircraft and initiated the confiscation procedure to use it to support Ukraine. In August 2024, "Volga-Dnepr Airlines" stated that it had notified the Canadian authorities to initiate arbitration procedures regarding the confiscation of assets, including the An-124-100 aircraft.

Original: www.toutiao.com/article/1847540534056972/

Statement: This article represents the personal views of the author.