WASHINGTON, Feb 16: The case of confiscation of the An-124 cargo plane belonging to Russia’s Volga-Dnepr is still being heard in Canadian courts, Russian Ambassador to Canada Oleg Stepanov told RIA Novosti.
“The case is still being heard in Canadian courts. The owner, Volga-Dnepr, is a party. We, as a state, are not involved in this proceeding and cannot comment on the legal details of the ongoing case,” Stepanov said.
He added that Moscow would consider taking any specific steps only after all legal options in Canada have been exhausted. “At the same time, our principled position on the unilateral confiscation, which we have repeatedly conveyed to the authorities in Ottawa, remains unchanged: the Canadian side deliberately lured the Volga-Dnepr aircraft here in order to seize it, and, afterward, fabricated pseudo-grounds for the arrest and seizure,” Stepanov added.
He emphasized that such actions are unacceptable and illegal, and the aircraft must be unconditionally returned to its owner. The An-124 operated by Russian air cargo company Volga-Dnepr arrived in Canada on February 27, 2022, from China with a shipment of COVID-19 rapid tests under a contract with the Canadian government.
The plane was due to depart the next day. However, on February 27, 2022, Canada closed its airspace for Russian aircraft and refused the request for permission to depart. Since then, the aircraft has been detained in Toronto airport.
The Russian Embassy in Canada has repeatedly stressed that Ottawa must unconditionally return the seized An-124 aircraft to its owners, and warned that its potential forfeiture would be “unacceptable and illegal.” The diplomatic mission believes the case has been heavily politicized from its onset. (UNI)
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