Wizz Air has announced that starting on March 14 all flights to the Moldovan capital Chisinau will be canceled due to worries about the safety of the country's airspace.
A Russian missile was launched earlier this month over Moldovan airspace.
The airline's decision was deemed rash and regrettable by Moldova's civil aviation authority.
One of Europe's poorest countries, Moldova has been severely impacted by the conflict in Ukraine.
The safety of the passengers and crew is still Wizz Air's top priority, according to the airline.
Wizz Air has decided to suspend all flights to Chisinau beginning on March 14 due to recent developments in Moldova and the elevated risk, but not immediate, in the nation's airspace. ".
According to Moldova's civil aviation authority, the airline requested approval for its summer flight schedule on 14 February. The agency "determined that flights in the national airspace can be carried out safely by following a number of procedures," it said.
The authority promised to take "all necessary actions" to quickly welcome Wizz Air back to the airport in Chisinau and to entice other low-cost carriers.
Wizz Air announced that there would be more flights from across Europe to Iasi, a city in eastern Romania close to the Moldovan border, to replace the Chisinau service.
Moscow and the government of Moldova have been experiencing increasing tension.
Last summer, Moldova, which is sandwiched between Romania and Ukraine, applied to join the EU.
With a population of 2.6 million, the nation has struggled with the influx of refugees from Ukraine and tensions with Transnistria, a secessionist pro-Moscow region that is home to 1,500 Russian soldiers.
Earlier this month, Volodymyr Zelensky, the president of Ukraine, claimed that a Russian plot to annihilate Moldova had been discovered by Kyiv's intelligence service.
In addition, Moldovan President Maia Sandu has charged Russia with hatching a scheme to overthrow Moldova's government by using spies from Serbia, Belarus, Montenegro, and Russia.
They would target government buildings, take hostages, and then start protests to overthrow the current administration and install one "at the service of Russia," according to her.
In the meantime, the Russian defense ministry has claimed—without providing any supporting evidence—that Ukrainian saboteurs disguising themselves as Russian troops would invade Transnistria and launch an attack.
