Czech Republic not to cancel flights to Egypt: minister

Czech Interior Minister Milan Chovanec on Thursday said the country has no intelligence information that entitled it to cancel flights to Egypt in connection with the recent Russian air crash in the Sinai Peninsula.

Chovanec said he presumed that Egypt would solve the affair soon, and the Egyptian side would investigate the incident together with Russian specialists to clearly define the cause of the explosion.

He said Egypt is dependable on tourism, and it therefore can not afford any sluggish and lengthy investigation. "So far the Russians themselves are flying, we have no reason not to fly," Chovanec was quoted as saying.

Chovanec said there should be dozens of Czech citizens in that area, and they have no intelligence information that the Czechs in Egypt or on their way to there were threatened.

Czech Foreign Ministry said on its website that they are observing the latest valid recommendations when it comes to the trips to Egypt in connection with the plane crash in Sinai. It said that the Czech Republic also called for increased security measures at the Sharm el-Sheikh airport.

The ministry said there is no direct flight operating between the Czech Republic and Sharm el-Sheikh currently. It has recommended to Czechs that they only travel to Egypt for really serious reasons, except for the Red Sea resorts and major heritage sites. Enditem