A Russian mountaineer who fell from a cliff face in northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region is recovering after undergoing brain surgery at a local hospital.

Sergey Bezditko, 48, who fell into a coma after high winds knocked him off Mount Kongur in western Xinjiang last Friday, had an brain operation at the No. 1 People's Hospital of Kashi Prefecture on Saturday and is now in a stable condition, doctors said.

"Mr. Bezditko has regained consciousness and is able to take food and talk again," said chief surgeon Liu Zhengqing, "but he is still not out of danger and needs to remain under close observation for at least 15 days."

When he was descending the 7,719-meter tall mountain with five other Russian mountaineers last Friday, Bezditko was knocked off Mount Kongur in western Xinjiang and fell into a coma.

His teammates carried him to the foot of the mountain where they met a villager who also worked as a guide. With the help of his fellow Russians, the villager and other local police officers, Bezditko was sent to the No. 1 People's Hospital in Kashi Prefecture for an operation.

His five teammates left China for home on Sunday.

In another development, around 1,700 people have been called up to join the search for six Russian tourists who were reported missing after they embarked on a canoeing trip in Xinjiang's Hotan Prefecture late last month.

The six Russians were identified as Vladimir Smetannikov, Sergey Chernik, Andrey Pautov, Dmitry Tishchenko, Ivan Chernik and Alexander Zverev, with the youngest aged 25 and the oldest 47.

(Xinhua News Agency September 12, 2007)