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New Emergency Body

MOSCOW -- Russia is setting up a new state search-and-rescue operation to act in emergency situations such as plane crashes, Itar-Tass has reported. The service will be provided by the Defense Ministry body responsible for evacuating Russian cosmonauts from spacecraft when they return to earth. The body will also now be responsible for assisting at plane crashes and natural disasters, the news agency said Saturday. The breakup of Russia's Aeroflot airline since the collapse of the Soviet Union has badly affected aviation safety. There were 348 accidental deaths last year compared with 250 in 1992.

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