Never a good idea to deny your very nasty large neighbor small things like diplomatic plane passage. The Russians won’t forget this intentional slight. It’s like a six year old saying no because the sixteen year old boyfriend of his older sister is with him. Unfortunately the boyfriend will be dating someone else soon, and the six year old will get the crap beat out of him. If the sanctions cover diplomats, then the EU better start sending the Russians home. And the UN delegation needs to leave New York.
Actually, none of the countries that refused overflight rights are direct neighbors of Russia. In fact, they all have at least two countries between them and Russia.
The Russians won’t forget this intentional slight. It’s like a six year old saying no because the sixteen year old boyfriend of his older sister is with him. Unfortunately the boyfriend will be dating someone else soon, and the six year old will get the crap beat out of him.
Actually, this particular six year old is one of 30 brothers, several of them quite large, and all committed to defending even their smallest siblings from any bullies. So I don't think they're too worried.