Paraphrased Headline Pakistan Denies Bangladesh Airspace Access, Citing Technical Problems

Pakistan has described the delay in allowing airspace for a flight carrying nuclear fuel to Bangladesh’s Rooppur Nuclear Power Plant as a technical and procedural matter. The clarification came after the planned shipment of uranium for the plant’s second reactor was delayed, with Bangladeshi officials saying the aircraft could not proceed because the required airspace clearance had not been obtained.

The Pakistan High Commission in Dhaka said on Tuesday that Islamabad follows established procedures when processing requests for diplomatic flights and overflight permissions. According to the mission, such requests are handled within a standard framework based on civil aviation regulations and other applicable protocols. It said the reported issue appeared to involve technical arrangements related to flight routing and airspace permissions, which can require coordination between aviation authorities and other government agencies and may sometimes lead to changes in flight schedules.

Pakistan also emphasised the importance it attaches to its relationship with Bangladesh and said the situation should be understood in its technical context rather than being interpreted through narratives that could affect bilateral relations. The controversy emerged after Bangladesh's nuclear fuel shipment for Unit 2 of the Rooppur Nuclear Power Plant failed to arrive as scheduled on September 24. Bangladesh's Science and Technology Minister Faqir Mahbub Anam said officials had been informed that the cargo aircraft carrying the uranium could not use Pakistani airspace. He said the exact reason for the lack of clearance was initially unclear, while Russia has now suggested that the shipment could be rescheduled for the first week of October.

Sheikh Mohammed Tauhidul Islam, Joint Secretary at Bangladesh's Ministry of Science and Technology, said preparations had already been completed at the airport when officials were informed by a liaison officer from Russia's Rosatom that the required airspace was not available. As a result, the shipment could not be dispatched according to the original schedule.

The Rooppur Nuclear Power Plant is being constructed in Bangladesh's Pabna district with technical support from Russia's state nuclear corporation Rosatom and under the supervision of the Bangladesh Atomic Energy Commission. The project consists of two VVER-1200 reactor units with a combined planned capacity of 2,400 megawatts, making it a major component of Bangladesh's plans to expand its electricity generation capacity.

Bangladesh received the first shipment of nuclear fuel for Rooppur's Unit 1 from Russia in 2023. The consignment contained 164 fresh fuel assemblies manufactured by Rosatom's Novosibirsk Chemical Concentrates Plant. The fuel was transported to Dhaka aboard a Russian heavy-lift cargo aircraft before being moved to the Rooppur site through a heavily secured route. The shipment was transported in radiation-shielded containers under security arrangements involving the Bangladesh Army and other law-enforcement agencies.

The latest delay involves the fuel intended for the plant's second reactor unit. While Bangladesh awaits a revised delivery schedule, Pakistan has maintained that the airspace issue is connected to technical and procedural arrangements. Rosatom has also been approached for clarification regarding the delayed shipment, although no response had been received at the time of reporting.