Skip to main content

UK Scrambled Jets To Respond To Russian Aircraft 21 Times In 3 Weeks

UK fighter jets have been scrambled to respond to Russian aircraft 21 times in the last three weeks, under NATO's air policing operations in Europe's Baltic region, Britain said late Saturday.

The Royal Air Force Typhoon fighters, currently operating out of Estonia, are part of so-called "quick reaction alert" aircraft used by the Western alliance to secure its eastern European flank.

Their response comes amid heightened tensions with Moscow over its ongoing war in Ukraine, which has been temporarily overshadowed this weekend by a mutiny within Russia by the Wagner paramilitary group.

The UK Typhoons, which have been operating out of an Estonian air base since March, were launched to monitor the Russian aircraft when they failed to respond to air traffic agencies, Britain's Ministry of Defence (MoD) said in a statement.

They are policing the skies above the Baltics alongside Portuguese and Romanian air forces based in Lithuania, it noted.

The Russian aircraft intercepted included Su-27 fighter jets as well as long-range bombers, and transport and intelligence collection aircraft.

Quick reaction alert missions see NATO air force crews maintain "constant high readiness to ensure they can get airborne at a moment's notice," according to Britain's defence ministry.

UK Defence Secretary Ben Wallace said the intercepts were "a stark reminder of the value of collective defence and deterrence provided by NATO". 

"The RAF has operated alongside our allies over the last three weeks to ensure both member states and our partner nations are protected, and they can be assured of our ongoing commitment to strengthening European security alongside those who share our values," he added.

While deployed to Estonia, the RAF has also taken part in several major aerial exercises with NATO allies, including "Exercise Air Defender", which the ministry described as the largest since the end of the Cold War.

It featured more than 250 aircraft and 10,000 personnel from 25 nations.

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)



from NDTV News-World-news https://ift.tt/FKacvT2

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Released 2 American Hostages On "Humanitarian Grounds": Hamas

Gaza's ruler Hamas said Friday its armed wing has released two American hostages, from around 200 captives abducted in attacks by the militant group in Israel on October 7. "In response to Qatari efforts, (Ezzedine) al-Qassam Brigades released two American citizens (a mother and her daughter) for humanitarian reasons," Hamas said in a statement posted on Telegram. The Islamist group did not detail how or when the hostages were released. The Israeli military said earlier Friday that most of those abducted to Gaza were still alive. "The majority of the hostages are alive. There were also dead bodies that were taken... to the Gaza Strip," an army statement said. The military said more than 20 hostages were minors, while between 10 and 20 were over the age of 60. There are also between 100 and 200 people considered missing since the Hamas attacks, the army added. On October 7, the Palestinian militant group carried out a deadly assault on Israel, the worst in...
Post a Comment
Read more

Gaza's Rafah Border Crossing Area Hit In Military Strike

The area of the Rafah border crossing between the blockaded Gaza Strip and Egypt was hit Monday in a military strike, AFP correspondents said, as hundreds of Palestinians gathered hoping to cross. The area of the shuttered crossing point in Gaza's south had been hit at least three times last week by Israeli air strikes after Gaza-based Hamas attacked southern Israel on October 7 that triggered all-out war. (Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.) from NDTV News-World-news https://ift.tt/z9CBc7N
Post a Comment
Read more

Sri Lanka Must Achieve Debt Restructuring By September: IMF

The International Monetary Fund on Tuesday reaffirmed that Sri Lanka must achieve its debt restructuring process by September, which is also the time for the global lender's formal review of the bailout facility it extended to the cash-strapped nation. On March 20, IMF extended a nearly $3 billion bailout facility to debt-ridden Sri Lanka that would help stabilise the country's economy after it was jolted by a devastating economic crisis last year. In a statement issued on Tuesday at the end of a nearly two weeks staff visit to Colombo to assess the progress made by Sri Lanka since the agreement was reached, the IMF said the two sides had discussed the developments on debt restructuring. "Sri Lanka must achieve debt restructuring by its first review due in September. We also discussed progress on debt restructuring, noting the ongoing discussions with both foreign and domestic creditors," the statement read. Sri Lanka is still struggling to normalise its crisis-hi...
Post a Comment
Read more