Cairo Hopes Egypt Will Restore Air Connection With Russia Before Summer

Cairo hopes that the air connection between Russia and Egypt will be renewed soon, Egyptian Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry told Sputnik Wednesday.

MOSCOW (Sputnik) — Cairo hopes that the air connection between Russia and Egypt will be restored before summer, Egyptian Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry told Sputnik Wednesday.

“We hope that air flights will be restored before summer and I hope that the appropriate agreement between the Egyptian and Russian governments on the resumption of flights will be reached as soon as possible,” Shoukry said.

The top Egyptian diplomat expressed hope that all additional security measures taken by Cairo to protect Egyptian airports would encourage Russia to restore a tourist flow to Egypt.

"Egyptian people are suffering currently because of the lack of tourism revenue. We look toward Russia to show its traditional support to the Egyptian economy, to the Egyptian people," Shoukry added.

Russia suspended flights to and from Egypt last fall after a Russian airliner crashed in the Sinai desert on October 31 while flying from the resort city of Sharm el-Sheikh to St. Petersburg.

Shoukry is currently in Moscow on a three-day official visit to hold political consultations to discuss the resumption of Russian flights, regional issues, including the current situation in Syria, Libya and Yemen, as well as the further development of the bilateral relations.