Russian airline Aeroflot halts all international flights from March 8

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Russian flag carrier Aeroflot halted all international flights from March 8. Earlier in the week, Russia's Defence Ministry announced a ceasefire to allow civilians in the port city of Mariupol and the town of Volnovakha to facilitate the evacuation of civilians. 

Information for passengers of international flights departing after 8 March https://t.co/fURxWXV4UV

— Aeroflot_World (@Aeroflot_World) March 5, 2022

Aeroflot said, "To reduce risks for passengers of inability to use return flights to Russia  Aeroflot, starting from 6 March, will stop admitting on international flights passengers holding return tickets with the return segment to Russia dated after 8 March 2022. Passengers of international flights holding one-way tickets with departure from Russia will be admitted for carriage until the moment of flights suspension."

It futher said, "Passengers of international flights who are currently abroad and holding return tickets with a flight segment from Russia already used can contact the airline to rebook the return segment to Russia before the suspension of flights. For passengers staying abroad up to the moment when flights are suspended, the airline will exercise maximum effort to organize their return to Russia."

Ukraine’s Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba on March 5 called on the European countries to close all their ports for the Russian ships amid the heightened tensions in Ukraine. Taking to Twitter, Kuleba said, "Help us stop Putin. Close all European ports for Russian ships. The time to act is now." 

Earlier, Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu said that Turkey has also warned all coastal and non-coastal countries it would not allow warships through its straits Bosporus and the Dardanelles as a part of the Montreux Convention adopted in 1936. 

Russian forces launched military operations in Ukraine on February 24, three days after Moscow recognized Ukraine’s breakaway regions - Donetsk and Luhansk - as independent entities. Amid the Ukraine-Russia crisis raging for over a week now, Ukraine plans to hold the third round of talks with Russian officials to try to end the fighting triggered by Moscow’s invasion this weekend, said one of Kyiv’s negotiators. 

(With inputs from ANI)