First group of Russian planes laves Syria for Russia - Defense Ministry

MOSCOW, March 15. /TASS/. The first group of Russian planes has left the Hmeimim air base in Syria for their permanent locations in Russia, the Defense Ministry has said. "The group consists of the leader plane - a Tupolev-154 liner - and multi-role bombers Sukhoi-34," the Defense Ministry specified. The planes will be leaving Hmeimim for Russia in groups, the Defense Ministry said. "Each group consists of the leader - a military transport jet (a Tupolev-154 or Ilyushin-76) carrying engineering personnel and material assets and equipment, followed by Russian combat planes of different types," the Defense Ministry explained. After crossing the Russian border the planes will head for their respective bases, making stops for refueling and maintenance, if need be, the Defense Ministry said. Russian President Vladimir Putin on Monday ordered starting the pullout of the main Russian air group from Syria as of March 15. He said the tasks set to the Russian military had been coped with "by and large." Russia joined the operation against terrorists in Syria on September 30, 2015 at the request of Syrian president Bashar Assad. Ceasefire took effect in Syria on February 27, 2016. It had been agreed by Russia and the United States. The ceasefire does not apply to the groups Islamic State and Jabhat al-Nusra (both outlawed in Russia), and also other groups declared terrorist by the UN Security Council. Read more