Ukraine – live news: Russian aircraft intercepted by RAF typhoon and German jets after drone crash
A Russian aircraft was intercepted by RAF and German fighter jets near Estonian airspace in the first joint exercise between the two Nato allies.
Two British and German Typhoon jets were scrambled on Tuesday when a Russian air-to-air refuelling aircraft failed to communicate with Estonian air traffic control.
The UK Ministry of Defence stressed the “routine” nature of the mission, but it comes amid tensions between the West and Russia over the invasion of Ukraine.
It comes as Moscow’s ambassador to the United States Anatoly Antonov said Russia views the incident involving one of its Su-27 fighter jets and a US military drone over the Black Sea as a provocation.
“The American UAV deliberately and provocatively was moving towards Russian territory with transponders turned off,” Mr Antonov said in remarks posted on his embassy’s website, referring to the drone as an unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV).
It follows as a US surveillance drone crashing into the Black Sea after it was intercepted by Russian fighter jets, Washington has said.
While there have been other such intercepts, the “reckless” incident was noteworthy because it was “unsafe and unprofessional” and caused the downing of a US aircraft, the White House said.
