Russian jets intercepted by NATO planes over Estonia
A file photo of two MiG-31 jets.
NATO planes have intercepted three Russian jets flying near neutral waters close to Estonia, says the Western military alliance.
"Two Spanish F-18 jets assigned to NATO’s Baltic Air Policing mission scrambled from Estonia's Amari Air Base. Finnish jets also scrambled to intercept the aircraft," said NATO in a statement released on Tuesday.
It noted that the Russian aircraft were identified two MiG-31 jets and one Antonov AN-26 transport plane.
NATO also announced that its planes had briefly violated Finnish airspace while carrying out the intercept maneuvers.
“In handing over the intercept to the Finnish jets, the Spanish jets accidentally entered Finnish airspace…NATO’s Air Command has explained the incident to the Finnish Air Operations Center to improve future coordination,” said NATO spokesman Dylan P. White.
Russia’s Defense Ministry said that the Russian planes were “carrying out a training flight over the neutral waters of the Baltic Sea… in strict accordance with the rules of the use of airspace, without violating the borders of foreign states.”
“During the mission, a NATO F-18 fighter jet approached the Russian air group and followed it for around a minute. After that it changed course and retracted towards the airspace of the Baltic state,” it added.
Intercepts by Russian and NATO planes when aircraft approach each other for identification have become frequent occurrences over the Baltic Sea over the past few years, as the Western alliance bolsters its presence in the region after Crimea’s reunion with Russia and the Ukrainian conflict.
The Kremlin has repeatedly censured what it perceives as mounting anti-Russia hysteria and Russophobia in Europe, and calls NATO's military buildup at its doorstep a threat to its national security. Furthermore, Moscow accuses NATO of fearmongering to justify larger defense expenditure by its member states.
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