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amsterdam [Netherlands]Feb 15 (ANI): Two Dutch F-35 fighter jets intercepted a formation of three Russian military aircraft over Poland and escorted them away late on Monday, the Dutch Ministry of Defense said in a statement.
“The aircraft, unknown at the time, approached the Polish NATO area of ​​responsibility from Kaliningrad,” the ministry said, according to Reuters.
Kaliningrad, a Russian enclave between Poland and Lithuania on the Baltic coast, also hosts Moscow’s important military air base.
“After identification, it turned out to be three aircraft: a Russian IL-20M Coot-A, escorted by two Su-27 Flankers. Dutch F-35s escorted the formation from a distance and handed over the escort to NATO partners,” the Dutch government said. The department’s statement added.
Il-20M Coot-A is the NATO designation for the Russian Ilyushin Il-20M reconnaissance aircraft, while Su-27 Flankers is the NATO designation for the Sukhoi Su-28 fighter jet.
“On Monday, Dutch F-35 fighter jets based at the 22nd Tactical Air Base in Marburg were scrambled to identify and intercept three Russian aircraft flying near Polish airspace,” the Polish Ministry of Defense told Politico, adding that the fighter jets were flying internationally. flying over waters and “no airspace was interrupted”.
Tensions between Russia and NATO came just days after the Kremlin launched a war against Ukraine after a Russian missile came close to entering the airspace of NATO member Romania.
The Russian Ministry of Defense did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Eight Dutch F-35 fighter jets will be stationed in Poland in February and March, the Dutch Ministry of Defense said.
Poland’s Ministry of Defense said the operation was “standard” as part of NATO’s step-up of air policing, which is inspecting the military alliance’s eastern flank. (Arnie)
(This is an unedited and auto-generated story from a Syndicated News feed, the content body may not have been modified or edited by LatestLY staff)
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