U.S. to protest ‘unsafe’ interception of reconnaissance plane by Russian Fighter Jet
April 13, 2015
The U.S. will protest what it called the unsafe interception of a U.S. spy plane by a Russian fighter over the Baltic Sea last week, an incident American officials said Sunday was an example of increasingly aggressive air operations by Moscow. The encounter, which took place on the morning of April 7 but was only publicly discussed by the U.S.in recent days, is the latest incident of escalating friction between Russia and members of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization.
This air interception, along with stepped-up NATO patrols and expanding Russian air-force flights, illustrates how tensions reminiscent of the Cold War are erupting between Western allies and Moscow. “The nature of Russian air activity is expanding west into Europe and becoming more aggressive,” Col. Steve Warren, the chief Pentagon spokesman said in a statement Sunday.