Biden to announce ban on Russian flights in US airspace in State of the Union

President Joe Biden will announce a ban on Russian air carriers flying into U.S. airspace during his State of the Union address Tuesday, further penalizing Moscow for its war in Ukraine.

The move builds on earlier prohibitions by the European Union and Canada that bar Russian-owned and -operated aircraft from entering their airspace, further cutting off Russia's access to global aviation paths. Moscow quickly retaliated by closing its airspace to Western air carriers.

As a result, Russian planes will be forced into longer, more complicated, and fuel-intensive flight paths.

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“Our airspace will be closed to every Russian plane — and that includes the private jets of oligarchs,” European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said in announcing Europe's plan.

The president is expected to target Russian President Vladimir Putin directly in his address late Tuesday, arguing he made a strategic failure in attacking Kyiv under the assumption NATO members would not respond.

According to a preview of Biden's prepared remarks, the president will say Putin “rejected efforts at diplomacy, he thought the West and NATO wouldn’t respond, and he thought he could divide us here at home.”

“Putin was wrong. We were ready,” Biden will tell the nation.

The Biden administration has coordinated with trans-Atlantic allies to exact harsher economic penalties on Russia in response to the bloody attack on Ukraine. Russia's currency has collapsed, and the country's Central Bank faces new capital restrictions. On Tuesday, the company behind the Russian-backed Nord Stream 2 pipeline filed for bankruptcy in response to U.S. sanctions, according to a Swiss official.

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The president is also expected to say that Western allies must confront aggressors or face the consequences.

“Throughout our history, we’ve learned this lesson: When dictators do not pay a price for their aggression, they cause more chaos. They keep moving, and the costs and threats to America and the world keep rising,” Biden will add.