NEW DELHI: Pakistan has denied airspace clearance to a Russian cargo flight carrying nuclear fuel for Bangladesh's Rooppur nuclear power plant, delaying the scheduled arrival of uranium for the facility's Unit 2. Pakistan later described the matter as a "technical and procedural" issue involving flight routing and airspace permissions.
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The nuclear fuel was scheduled to arrive in Bangladesh on September 24 but did not reach the country after the aircraft was not allowed to use Pakistani airspace. Russia has now proposed the first week of October as a new arrival date, according to Bangladesh officials as cited by news agency ANI.
"We heard that a cargo plane carrying uranium for the Rooppur Nuclear Power Plant in Bangladesh was scheduled to arrive on September 24. However, the flight was not given permission to use Pakistani airspace, so the uranium did not arrive in Bangladesh as planned. As of now, the exact reason for Pakistan not granting the airspace clearance is still unknown", ANI quoted Bangladesh's minister for science and technology Faqir Mahbub Anam saying.
"A new date has been proposed, with Russia indicating the first week of October for the uranium to arrive in Bangladesh", he added.
Sheikh Mohammed Tauhidul Islam, joint secretary in Bangladesh's science and technology ministry, said preparations had been completed at the airport before officials were informed that the airspace was unavailable.
"We had completed all the preparations at the airport and were waiting, but the liaison officer from Rosatom told us that the airspace was not clear. So we couldn’t send it. It may need to be rescheduled", he said.
Pakistan's high commission in Dhaka, in a clarification, said the matter was related to technical and procedural arrangements.
"Pakistan maintains an unwavering commitment to international diplomatic norms and processes all requests for diplomatic flight and overflight clearances within a standardised, predictable timeframe, strictly in accordance with our established regulatory guidelines and civil aviation protocols," ANI quoted it as saying.
"With regard to the reports being quoted, the matter appears to relate to technical and procedural arrangements concerning flight routing and airspace permissions, which can occasionally require coordination among the relevant aviation and other authorities and may result in adjustments to flight schedules", it added.
The high commission also said the incident should not be linked to Pakistan-Bangladesh ties.
"Pakistan attaches high importance to its relations with Bangladesh, and it would therefore be appropriate to view the matter in its proper technical context and not attach undue significance to reports or narratives that may seek to misplace it to undermine our bilateral relations," it said.
The Rooppur Nuclear Power Plant, Bangladesh's first nuclear power facility, is being built with technical assistance from Russia's state nuclear corporation Rosatom. The project comprises two VVER-1200 reactor units with a combined capacity of 2,400 MW.
