Before the end of 2015, Russia will begin negotiations with Egypt on the possible resumption of air traffic, the head of the Ministry of Transport, Maxim Sokolov, said on Wednesday on the Russia 24 TV channel.

“We can start a conversation, and even now, even before the New Year, we will already begin working together,” the minister said. He noted that difficult and very responsible work lies ahead.

Sokolov said that the reasons for the cessation of air traffic with Egypt are completely different than in the Turkish direction. And he emphasized that Russia and all participants in the process are aimed at resuming air traffic.

The head of the Ministry of Transport said that Russian specialists, together with colleagues from abroad, conducted an audit of Egyptian airports. Conclusions are now being formed, and as soon as Moscow is convinced that all safety standards have been ensured, “it will be possible to speak cautiously about the beginning of the resumption of air travel to the Arab Republic.”

On October 31, 2015, an Airbus A321 of Kogalymavia airlines, taking off from Sharm el-Sheikh to St. Petersburg, crashed 24 minutes into the flight over the Sinai Peninsula. All 224 people on board were killed.

On November 6, Russian President Vladimir Putin supported the recommendation of the head of the FSB, Alexander Bortnikov, to suspend Russian aviation flights to Egypt until the causes of the crash of the Airbus A321 airliner are clarified. On November 8, Putin signed a decree establishing a temporary ban on Russian airlines flying from Russian territory to Egypt.

At that time, there were about 80,000 Russian tourists in Egypt. The last flight to remove Russians from Egypt was scheduled for November 30. On November 23, the head of Rostourism, Oleg Safonov, assured that all Russian tourists who bought organized tours to Egypt were taken out of the country, Interfax reported .

On November 17, the head of the FSB, Alexander Bortnikov, at a meeting of the Russian Security Council with President Putin , said that the cause of the Airbus A321 crash in Egypt was a terrorist attack.

The Ministry of Transport announced negotiations with Egypt on the resumption of air traffic