Britain sends jets to intercept Russian plane over Black Sea
Britain’s Royal Air Force has scrambled jets from a base in Romania to intercept a Russia plane flying near NATO airspace in Eastern Europe.
The RAF said in a statement on Thursday that it had sent two Typhoon jets from Romania's Mihail Kogalniceanu Air Base near Constanta, located on the Black Sea, to stop a Russia aircraft that allegedly flew westward near NATO airspace.
“Royal Air Force Typhoons based in Romania have been launched in response to Russian Su-24 FENCER aircraft operating near NATO airspace over the Black Sea,” RAF said in the statement.
It added that the Russian aircraft did not enter the NATO skies and British jets returned to the Romanian base after patrolling the skies.
The scrambling of the jets is the latest to come from NATO’s so-called deterrent actions against Russia. The two sides have been accusing each other of militarization of the Baltics and other regions since a conflict broke out in Ukraine in 2014.
Russia has beefed up its deployments along its western borders alleging that it is a precaution against NATO’s increasing military activity in Eastern Europe.
NATO views Russia’s actions as a major threat to its eastern flank.
Encounters between Russian and British air forces have occurred in the past almost on a regular basis. RAF Typhoons were scrambled to intercept a Russian warplane approaching NATO airspace in May following a similar incident in January.
There was no comment from Moscow on the latest development. However, Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Alexander Grushko said Thursday that his country was ready to launch a dialogue with NATO countries to prevent dangerous military incidents.
“We have the sufficient basis, which allows us to avoid dangerous military incidents,” said Grushko, adding that Russia was ready to hold separate conversations with each NATO member on the issue.
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