Russia Won't Resume Flights to Egypt Soon, Medvedev Says

Russia’s ban on flights to Egypt won’t be lifted quickly amid concerns over security following the air crash that killed 224 people, Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev said.

“Let’s not indulge in illusions, this won’t be a short period,” Medvedev said at a meeting with his deputies outside Moscow on Monday. “It will take time to ensure security for a vacation in Egypt.”

Russia brought some 25,000 tourists home from Egypt on more than 100 flights since the travel ban ordered by President Vladimir Putin on Friday, Deputy Prime Minister Arkady Dvorkovich told the meeting. The remaining tourists should be back within two weeks, he said.

An Islamic State affiliate claimed it blew up the Metrojet aircraft that left the Egyptian resort of Sharm el-Sheikh for St. Petersburg on Oct. 31, saying it was in retaliation for Russian bombing in Syria. Putin ordered Russian flights to Egypt halted to ensure “the safety of our citizens,” his spokesman, Dmitry Peskov, told reporters. Russia began air strikes Sept. 30 against Islamic State and other militants in Syria fighting the regime of Bashar al-Assad.

The U.S. and the U.K. said a bomb may have caused the plane crash in the Sinai desert, a view echoed by France. Egypt and Russia said they have no evidence for this, though they haven’t ruled anything out and investigators are probing a last-second noise heard on the flight data recorder.
Tour Losses

Losses for tour operators may reach $200 million if the ban on flights remains in force for two or three months, including the busiest season of New Year holidays, the Russian tourism lobby group ATOR said in a statement Monday. Operators are seeking state guarantees on loans to be able to compensate tourists who can’t fly to Egypt after the ban, it said.

Russia’s bombing campaign in Syria is proving the effectiveness of its military, Putin said at a meeting with defense-industry officials in Sochi on Monday.

“Timely measures increased the combat readiness, combat capabilities of our armedforces,” Putin said. “This is strongly confirmed by the anti-terrorist operation we’reconducting at the request of the Syrian leadership.”