NATO fighters scrambled to escort Russian reconnaissance plane over Baltic Sea
NATO dispatched two Eurofighter fighter jets over the Baltic Sea on Saturday after a Russian reconnaissance aircraft flying without a flight plan was detected, the German delegation to NATO reported.
The aircraft was an Il-20M that had taken off from Russia and entered international airspace without establishing radio contact. It was identified visually. According to the German Air Force, the plane refused to initiate communication.
The German Air Force said that after the visual identification, the escort was handed over to Sweden's NATO allies. The Il-20M is equipped with radar, signals intelligence and electronic warfare systems that enable it to monitor communications and air defense capabilities, as well as gather intelligence for Russian military operations.
The incident is the latest example of how Russia tests NATO's resilience on its eastern flank.
Just a few days earlier, on Thursday, three Russian MiG-31 fighter jets violated Estonian airspace over the Gulf of Finland, remaining there for 12 minutes. Estonia called the incursion a serious violation and requested consultations under Article 4 of the NATO founding treaty, which allows member states to confer when they consider their security to be under threat.
On the same day, Poland also reported that Russian fighter jets had entered the security zone of a Baltic Sea oil platform.
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Editor: Marcus Turovski, Mari Peegel
Source: The Kyiv Independent, The Guardian
