Syrian Airlines aircraft banned from the European Union airports

(WAPA) – On Monday 15 October 2012 the European Union has approved a new round of sanctions against the regime of the Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, some of which involve the aviation sector. 



The measures taken during the meeting of the minister for foreign affairs of the countries of the Union in Luxembourg complement an embargo on arms sales to Syria imposed last year: it is prohibited to import Syrian weapons to Europe, transport them anywhere or supply any financial services such as insurance to fund purchases of Syrian arms. “No EU citizens or companies must be involved in Syrian military cooperation with third countries, which could benefit the Syrian regime”, the ministers say in their statement. 

In the aviation field, the European Union has banned Syrian Airlines from every airport in the European Union: it is the carrier which operated the Airbus A-320 aircraft which, a few days ago, was forced to land at Ankara by two F-16s of Turkish Air Force: according to the reports provided by local authorities, it was carrying military equipment destined to Syria. 



Furthermore it has been confirmed the ban on cargo flights to Europe.