Russia to train pilots for UN mission in Sudan

MOSCOW, Jun 4, 2005 (Xinhua) — The Russian Defense Ministry has decided to send a helicopter squad to Sudan to train pilots and aviation engineers for the UN mission in the African country, a ministry source said Saturday.

Nepalese soldiers in the United Nations Mission in Sudan (UNMIS) arrive in El-Obeid, one of the main operational centres for aid agencies working in the south of Sudan, April 27, 2005. (Reuters).

Russia will send four Mi-24 helicopters and 100 to 110 pilots and other aviation personnel to Sudan by October, the Interfax news agency reported, citing the defense ministry source.

Sudan’s western Darfur region has been mired in civil war for more than two years since rebels in the impoverished region took up arms against the government in February 2003.

The UN Security Council adopted a US-drafted resolution in March approving the creation of the UN Mission in Sudan (UNMIS) to support the implementation of a peace deal between the rebels and the government.

The ministry source said a similar helicopter squad is completing its work in Sierra Leone and will leave the country in September.