Because I am the minister of transportation, this includes aviation. I am, therefore, kept informed on a daily basis by the “Directie Luchtvaart” concerning the effects the Russian military aggression against Ukraine has on Aruba.
As we know, various countries including the United States, the United Kingdom, and European Union have imposed sanctions due to the current state of affairs. These sanctions concern different areas; finance, maritime, diplomatic, and lastly, also aviation. Aruba, just like the other countries, is evaluating the applicability of each sanction as we integrate them into our laws. This is based on the sanctions that the European Union as well as Aruba are following.
Based on this, we have taken the step to close all air-space for planes that are property of, or that are owned by a Russian person or company. Besides this, “Directie Luchtvaart” has also imposed sanctions on a total of 7 planes. This includes unregistering or grounding the planes, depending on the sanction. The Aruban community can be assured that I will continue to closely monitor the sanctions together with “Directie Luchtvaart”. The sanctions are being updated regularly and we will make sure that Aruba will apply them accordingly.
