Estonia’s Parliament has called for the creation of a no-fly zone in Ukraine as Russia’s air attacks continue, becoming the first NATO member state to do so.
“The Riigikogu (Parliament of Estonia) asks the U.N. member states to take immediate steps to establish a no-fly zone in order to prevent massive civilian casualties in Ukraine,” the Parliament stated on March 14, noting that it “expresses its support to the defenders and the people of the state of Ukraine in their fight against the Russian Federation that has launched a criminal war.”
United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres, when asked about whether a no-fly zone should be implemented, told reporters that it’s “a matter that as you know has been analyzed by a number of countries that considered that possibility as a risk of escalation that could create a global conflict.”
“We need to be prudent ... even if I understand the dramatic appeal of the Ukrainian government,” Guterres said.
Since the start of the conflict on Feb. 24, Ukrainian officials have repeatedly called for a no-fly zone over the country. However, top NATO and White House officials have said that there has been no consideration for a no-fly zone in Ukraine, as that would involve U.S. or NATO planes shooting down Russian ones.
The Biden administration stated that such a move could provoke the Kremlin to further escalate attacks, including nuclear strikes.
The United States and NATO “will not fight a war against Russia in Ukraine,” because a “direct conflict between NATO and Russia is World War III, something we must strive to prevent,” according to Biden.
On March 14, battles continued around many of Ukraine’s main cities, including the capital Kyiv. Ukraine said it would try to evacuate civilians through 10 humanitarian corridors on March 14.
Russia denies targeting civilians, describing its actions as a “special operation” to demilitarize Ukraine. Ukraine and Western allies have called this a baseless pretext for Russia’s invasion of the democratic country of 44 million people.
Front-line states, such as Poland, which has welcomed more than half of the total number of people fleeing Ukraine; Slovakia; Romania; Hungary; and Moldova have taken in the vast majority of the refugees, some of whom have then headed farther west.
Poland’s border guard stated that about 1.76 million people had entered the country since the fighting started, with 18,400 arriving during the early hours of March 14.
