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European carrier Wizz Air to suspend flights to Moldova citing airspace ‘risk’

European carrier Wizz Air to suspend flights to Moldova citing airspace ‘risk’

European airlines Wizz Air to suspend flights to Moldova citing airspace ‘risk’

European airline Wizz Air is set to suspend flights to Moldova from 14 March citing "risk in the country's airspace" amid Russia-Moldova tensions.

The Hungarian airline in a statement said on Monday, “As a result of recent developments in Moldova and the high, but not imminent, risk in the country’s airspace, Wizz Air has taken the difficult but responsible decision to suspend all flights to Chisinau starting on March 14."

However, it did not detail what it meant by "recent developments."According to Wizz Air’s website, after 14 March, flights meant for Chisinau International Airport will land at Iasi in Romania.

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Tensions are simmering after Moldova accused Russia of plotting a coup in the country and vying to topple the ruling government. Chisinau also claimed that Russian missiles have breached the country's airspace on several ocasions as the Ukraine war entered its second year.

The breakaway Moldovan region of Transnistria is the latest inflection point in the Ukraine war. Moscow has not only denied all claims of plotting a coup in Moldova, it pushed back against the West's accusations of fanning tensions in the region.

Kremlin added that any actions that threatened Russian peacekeepers in Transdniestria will be taken as an attack on Russia itself.

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When Moldova became independent from the Soviet Union in 1991, Russia sent its military troops to Transnistria to lend support to pro-Moscow separatists in the region. Following this, a war with Moldovan forces broke out. It ended in deadlock in 1992 and Transnistria was not recognised internationally, even by Russia. Moldovan forces left it a de facto breakaway state.

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Now, about 500,000 inhabitants of the breakaway region are in a state of limbo, as reportedly Chisinau does not hold control over it even to this day.

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