'Russia to resume long-range bomber patrols'

President Vladimir Putin said Friday that he had ordered the military to resume regular long-range flights of strategic bombers, news agencies reported. "I have made a decision to resume regular flights of Russian strategic aviation," Putin was quoted as saying by Russian agencies. He said a halt in long-range bombers' flights after the Soviet collapse had affected Russia's security as other nations had continued such missions - a oblique reference to the United States.