Putin agrees to suspend flights to Egypt until causes of A321 crash are clear-Peskov

MOSCOW, November 6. /TASS/. Russian President Vladimir Putin has agreed with Interstate Aviation Committee recommendations to suspend air links with Egypt until the causes of the A321 plane crash have been identified, presidential press-secretary Dmitry Peskov has told the media. He said the director of the federal security service FSB Aleksandr Bortnikov had briefed the president on these recommendations after an IAC meeting on Friday. "The head of state agreed," Peskov said. "Putin has instructed the government to look into the mechanisms of implementing these IAC recommendations and ensure the return home of Russian citizens," he said. Also, Putin asked to establish cooperation with Egypt for ensuring the safety of air links, he added. There are no confirmed statistics as to how many Russian holiday-makers there are in Egypt at the moment. Several days ago the commercial director of a large Russian tour operator, Tez Tour, Aleksandr Burtin, told TASS that an estimated 30,000 to 40,000 tourists from Russia might be spending a holiday near Sharm el-Sheikh. "It’s high season down there," Burtin said. An A321 passenger jet of Russia’s Kogalymavia airlines crashed en route from Sharm el-Sheikh over the Sinai Peninsula on October 31, killing 217 passengers and seven crew. There were no survivors. Over several days three countries - Ireland, Britain and the Netherlands - have suspended flights to Sharm el-Sheikh on the suspicion the A321 jet crashed after a bomb explosion on board. There have been no official confirmations yet. Russia’s forensic examinations centre earlier said that Russian and Egyptian experts examined the passengers’ bodies to find no traces of a bomb impact yet so far. Read more