Freed Moldovan Pilots Treated In Russia After Years Of Afghan Captivity - Source

Two Moldovan pilots are receiving medical care in Russia, which helped free them from captivity in Afghanistan, a Russian diplomatic source told Sputnik on Thursday

MOSCOW (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 14th February, 2019) Two Moldovan pilots are receiving medical care in Russia, which helped free them from captivity in Afghanistan, a Russian diplomatic source told Sputnik on Thursday.

Their release was announced on Monday by Moldovan President Igor Dodon, who confirmed that Russia played a major role in ending their three-year ordeal at the hands of the Taliban.

"The freed Moldovan citizens are recovering after a trying period in their lives. Russia is giving them necessary assistance ... As soon as they say they are ready to see visitors and go home this will be organized," a Russian Foreign Ministry source said.

The Moldovan Foreign Ministry has recently summoned the Russian ambassador in Chisinau to demand that Russia give access to the two men, who President Dodon said were likely to be flown home within a week.

The pilots were captured in November 2015 when a helicopter they were flying on a mission for the Afghan security forces was downed in a Taliban-controlled territory. A third Moldovan crew member was killed in gunfight. His body was brought back to Moldova the following month.