Merkel's plane denied permission to fly over Iran

In an incident that could trigger a diplomatic row, Iran on Tuesday disallowed German Chancellor Angela Merkel's aircraft overflight rights while she was en route to India. Iran, however, later relented after negotiations.

As a result, the VVIP flight, which besides the German Chancellor had a large delegation on board, had to circle over Turkey for two hours before being given permission to enter Iranian airspace, German paper Der Spiegel reported.

The flight was finally allowed the normal flight route between Europe and India following an hour-long negotiation with Tehran, mediated by Turkey, and involved the foreign ministry in Berlin.

Merkel, on her way to India, arrived late in New Delhi on Tuesday as a result of the delay. "There has never been an incident like this," said German government spokesman Steffen Seibert.

Berlin would now consider whether it would lodge a diplomatic protest, he said. However, a second aircraft carrying several members of Merkel's cabinet, including Defence Minister Thomas de Maizire and Interior Minister Hans-Peter Friedrich, was able to cross Iranian airspace without any problems. This aircraft had left Berlin before Merkel's plane.

The reason for the denial of overflight rights was initially unclear. Before the plane left Berlin on Monday evening, it had been given permission to enter Iranian airspace. The aircraft was the inaugural flight of the new government plane "Konrad Adenauer," an Airbus A340-300. The incident could further sour relations between Berlin and Tehran, the paper said.

Image: German Chancellor Angela Merkel with Indian Prime Minister Dr Manmohan Singh. Photograph: B Mathur/Reuters