The Ministry of Foreign Affairs and European Integration has announced that the pilots Lionel Buruiană and Mihai Crihan are finally home after three years of being held hostage in Afghanistan and spending some time in rehabilitation in Moscow following their release in February.
The Ministry said in a press release legal and administrative steps are being taken to facilitate their reintegration. They are both in good health, but will remain under medical supervision for now and under the protection of the authorities in charge of their case.
On February 11, President Igor Dodon announced the two pilots’ release and thanked Russia for assisting with the operation. Speaker Andrian Candu later accused Dodon of plotting with Russia to exploit the case for electoral gains.
Buruiană and Crihan were flying a UN-commissioned civilian helicopter when it was taken down by the Taliban in an Afghan province in 2015. The captain Oleg Groza died during the attempt to crash-land.