Russia says it delivered MiG-29 fighter aircraft to Syria
Wednesday's Russian statement, backing up one made by Syria on Saturday, came after the United States accused Russia on May 26 of delivering aircraft to Libya via Syria.
The Russian Embassy in Syria said Wednesday that the Kremlin has delivered a “second batch” of MiG-29 fighter aircraft to Khmeimim air base.
The statement followed an announcement Saturday by Syria’s state-run SANA news agency that a “second group of modern and advanced MiG-29 fighters” was received in a ceremony the same day at the base in Latakia. SANA said Syrian pilots would begin flying missions with the aircraft Monday.
The statements left unclear when the first batch of planes was received.
The Syrian announcement came four days after the United States accused Russia of delivering at least 14 MiG-29 and Su-24 aircraft to Libya via Syria, where US Africa Command said they were repainted before continuing on to support Khalifa Hifter’s campaign against the United Nations-backed government in Tripoli.
