Berlin, March 5, (dpa/GNA) – German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier, has been forced to postpone a visit to South-East Asia due to the war in the Middle East, his spokeswoman confirmed on Thursday.
Steinmeier’s multi-day trip to Indonesia and the Philippines was due to begin on Sunday.
Due to the outbreak of the war in Iran, airspace has been closed over several countries in the Middle East in recent days, causing havoc for tourists stranded in the region.
The president’s spokeswoman said the route over the Middle East remains too dangerous and cannot be taken.
She said alternative journeys to South-East Asia have been assessed, but they were found to be too long, forcing the postponement.
During his visit to Lebanon and Jordan in February, before the start of the war, Steinmeier already got a taste of the difficult situation in the airspace over the Middle East.
Since Israel does not grant overflight rights for aircraft taking off from Beirut, his plane had to make a wide detour over the Mediterranean.
Instead of taking 30 minutes, the flight to the Jordanian capital Amman therefore took two hours.
GNA