Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky is pleading with NATO to impose an airspace ban on his country’s skies. But the transatlantic organization is refusing this offensive act of war for fear of provoking Putin’s fury and putting a point of no return in the conflict.
The measure could have catastrophic consequences, and Vladimir Putin once again reminded us of this. This Saturday, March 5, the Russian president stressed that Russia would consider any country that tries to impose a ban on air traffic on Ukraine as an ally in this war. But what exactly are we talking about?
What is a “no-fly zone”?
An air restricted zone, or “no-fly zone” in English, is a measure that prohibits air flight over an area. Here is the whole Ukrainian sky. This action is provided for in Article 42 of Chapter VII of the Charter of the United Nations. In particular, it provides for “any action necessary to maintain or restore international peace and security.”
In particular, all aircraft that are supposed to fly over the air territory of Ukraine, in the event of the creation of the NFZ, will have to request permission from the institution responsible for this measure. In our case: NATO. If the plane does not have ground clearance, then it can be shot down on the spot.
Why is Ukraine begging NATO to do this?
Volodymyr Zelensky has called on the West to establish a no-fly zone over Ukraine from the very beginning of the conflict. The goal for the Ukrainian president is clear: to prevent Russian planes from overflying the country and, therefore, immediately stop the bombing. In theory, Moscow will no longer be able to exercise its aerial omnipotence in Ukraine.
“Thank you for what you have done, but now there is war, and in wartime everything must be done in the name of security in Europe. Don’t let Putin turn Ukraine into Syria. We will continue to fight. But we need partners to help us with concrete, decisive and swift action,” Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba said on Friday.
He took part in an extraordinary meeting of NATO foreign ministers. My message: act now before it’s too late. Don’t let Putin turn Ukraine into Syria. We are ready to fight. We will continue to fight. But we need partners to help us with concrete, decisive and swift action now. pic.twitter.com/s4FCaAOjNy
— Dmitry Kuleba (@DmytroKuleba) March 4, 2022
Why is NATO refusing?
But the US and its NATO allies ruled out such a possibility for fear of a direct confrontation with Moscow. Indeed, the application of Article 42 would be tantamount for NATO to shoot down Russian aircraft and thereby start a head-on conflict with Russia. “This would de facto lead to direct clashes between NATO and Russia and would inevitably lead to an escalation of the conflict,” Dominique Trinquan, a military expert and former head of the French mission to the UN, tells Express.
Muriel Domenac, France’s ambassador to NATO, reminds us that preventing air traffic is primarily an offensive measure. And Westerners don’t want to be drawn into the conflict militarily.
How many messages have I received about this? Contrary to what we intuitively think, the “no-fly zone” is an offensive measure. Not defensive. To force it means to send allied aircraft against Russian assets in the Ukrainian sky https://t.co/OiXoxbwozS
— Muriel Domenach (@MurielDomenach) March 4, 2022
Total War in Europe
“The fundamental difference is that we risk a nuclear war with Russia if we get into a real confrontation between its forces and those of NATO. This has not been the case in past operations,” explains Mathieu Bouleg, a researcher specializing in Eurasia at Chatham House, a London-based think tank quoted by L’Express.
A measure that the Élysée Palace also rejects: “A no-fly zone is a very legitimate request by Ukrainians, but it is also very difficult to satisfy. This will require significant funds and will not prevent a war on the ground, ”a senior French diplomat points out, according to Huffpost.
Jens Stoltenberg, NATO Secretary General, explained after a meeting on the matter that “the only way to enforce a no-fly zone is to send NATO fighters into Ukrainian airspace and then shoot down Russian aircraft to enforce it.” and added: “The Allies agreed that we should not have NATO aircraft operating in Ukrainian airspace or NATO troops on the ground, because that could end in an all-out war in Europe.”
The position that Volodymyr Zelensky considers “weak” and “confusing”: “All these people who will die from today will die because of you. This is a self-hypnosis process for those who are weak, in inner uncertainty, while they have a weapon much more powerful than we have, ”he said.
The specter of a nuclear threat
On this issue, Vladimir Putin is as clear as possible. “Any development of events in this direction, we will consider as participation in an armed conflict of any country, the territory of which will pose a threat to our soldiers,” he said on Saturday, March 5, thus considering the countries in favor of the NFZ as “allies” . “in this war.
With the start of the offensive, the Russian president deployed his country’s “deterrence forces”. Russia currently possesses half of the world’s stockpiles of nuclear weapons.