ST. PETERSBURG, June 9. /TASS/. Russia plans to launch direct flights to Malaysia in 2026 and increase flight frequencies to Indonesia, China, and India, as well as to the Middle East once the regional situation stabilizes, Nikita Kondratyev, a senior official at the Russian Economic Development Ministry, told TASS on the sidelines of the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum (SPIEF).

"Of course, we would like to launch direct flights to Malaysia and increase the number of flights to Indonesia — not just for Russian citizens traveling to Bali, but also for Indonesians visiting Moscow. The main goal is perhaps not so much opening new destinations as expanding existing flight frequencies and catering to the demand from foreign tourists traveling to Russia. <...> As for Malaysia, we will primarily need to attract Malaysian airlines to operate flights to the Russian Federation," said Kondratyev, who heads the ministry's Department of Multilateral Economic Cooperation and Special Projects.

Furthermore, Russia aims to boost air connectivity with Middle Eastern countries after the situation in the region normalizes, as well as with China and India.

"We currently have 13-14 flights per week to India, and we all understand that this imposes severe restrictions on tourist flows. The task is to attract Indian carriers to the market. At present, only two Russian airlines operate on this route, and they are primarily focused on taking our tourists there," Kondratyev explained.