Serbia Turns to Russia to Help Fight Wildfires
Serbia said the Russian IL-76P will bolster firefighting capacity after EU aircraft were unavailable, as wildfires continue to strain regional resources.
- A Russian Emergencies Ministry IL-76P firefighting plane landed in Nis on Wednesday evening and was deployed Thursday to tackle a weeks-long wildfire in the Deliblatska Pescara natural protected reserve.
- Serbia, which has access to the European Union's Civil Protection Mechanism, sought Russian aid due to a lack of available large-capacity aircraft within the bloc as wildfires across Europe sapped regional resources.
- Although Russian aircraft are generally banned from European airspace following the 2022 invasion of Ukraine, the flight was permitted under humanitarian exemptions and crossed Bulgarian airspace after Belgrade's specific request.
- The mission, reportedly ordered by Russian President Vladimir Putin, highlights Serbia's balancing act between historical ties to Russia and its stated ambition to join the EU while avoiding sanctions.
- Luka Causic, head of the Interior Ministry's Department for Emergency Situations, said late Wednesday, "the arriving Russian aircraft will significantly strengthen our capacities in fighting the fires.
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The fire burned more than 3,600 hectares of vegetation in the Delibatska Pescara Nature Reserve in 15 days, and another 20 fires are raging in the country.
The Ministry of Emergency Situations of the Russian Federation (MČS) sent, on the order of the President of the Russian Federation, Vladimir Putin, the I1-76 plane to Serbia to help extinguish the fires in Šuš, it was announced today on the social networks of the Russian Embassy in Serbia.
Belgrade was visited by an IL-76P water bomber from the Russian Ministry of Emergency Situations. He crossed the skies of an EU and NATO member country.
Serbia appealed to Russia for help in combating vegetation fires due to the lack of available aircraft from the European Union, said the Ministry of Interior. An IL-76P extinguishing aircraft of the Russian Ministry for Emergency Situations landed Wednesday evening in the city of Nis, southern Serbia, and was deployed on Thursday for [...]
The plane is equipped with a special fire extinguishing system that allows it to eject up to 42 tons of water in one burst, euronews serbia, euronews serbia, euronews serbia, euronews serbia, euronews, euronews
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