NATO fighter jets at the Baltic Air Policing mission in Estonia and Lithuania were scrambled three times last week to intercept Russian military aircraft in international airspace over the Baltic Sea, the Baltic News Network reported Monday, citing the Lithuanian Defense Ministry.
In June, the Zvezda television channel run by Russia’s Defense Ministry released footage of NATO F-16s buzzing a plane carrying Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu as it flew over the Baltic Sea. The Reuters news agency cited a NATO spokesperson as saying the Russian jets failed to respond to requests to identify themselves.