RUSSIA CLAIMS IT INTERCEPTED US BOMBER PLANES OVER THE ARCTIC

Sun 21 July 2024:

Russia said on Sunday that it prevented a pair of US strategic bombers from crossing its border.

A statement by the Russian Defense Ministry said the country’s “means of airspace control” detected a group of air targets over the Barents Sea as they were approaching the border.

The statement said Russian fighter jets were dispatched to identify the targets, which it said identified them as a pair of B-52H strategic bombers belonging to the US Air Force.

It went on to say that the strategic bombers adjusted their flight course after the Russian fighter jets approached them, adding that no violations of the Russian border took place.

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“The flight of the Russian fighters was carried out in strict accordance with international rules for the use of airspace over neutral waters and in compliance with safety measures,” it also said.

US authorities have not yet commented on Russia’s statement.

In March 2023, a Russian Su-27 fighter jet damaged a US MQ-9 Reaper drone, causing it to crash into the Black Sea – the first direct clash between Russian and US forces since the Cold War, according to The Associated Press.

In June this year, Russia accused the US of using its reconnaissance drone flights over neutral waters in the Black Sea to help Ukraine strike the Russian-annexed Crimean Peninsula. It said that the flights increased the risk of a “direct confrontation” between NATO and Russia, and that its army had been instructed to prepare an “operational response”.

Last week, NATO leaders pledged to deliver at least $43bn in military aid to Ukraine within the next year to strengthen its defences against Russia. They also formally declared that Kyiv was on an “irreversible path” towards membership in the Western military alliance.

SOURCE: INDEPENDENT PRESS AND NEWS AGENCIES

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