Pakistan has denied India’s President Ram Nath Kovind permission to fly through its airspace. Pakistan federal minister for Aviation Ghulam Sarwar Khan said that “Pakistan has decided not to allow the Indian President use its airspace via Air India1 (AIC 1) B744 Reg VTESO Delhi to BIKF(Iceland) on 8-9-2019. This decision was taken after deliberation at the appropriate level. Aviation Division and Pakistan Civil Aviation Authority are the key stakeholders in decision making and its implementation were also part of this decision. We are also considering a ban on Indian Airlines to use Pakistan airspace.
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On the other hand, Pakistani foreign minister told local media that “the Indian president had sought permission to use Pakistan’s airspace to travel to Iceland but we decided not to permit him. The decision has been taken in view of India’s behaviour. Where India is not lifting the curfew and not providing basic rights to Kashmiri citizens.
Pakistan closed its airspace to Indian traffic after Indian Airforce attacked within Pakistani territory in February that raised tensions between Islamabad and New Delhi. Pakistan reopened its airspace for all civilian traffic in July, ending months of restrictions affecting major international routes.