Airspace violation: German Eurofighters push off Russian military aircraft
Created: 05/03/2022Updated: 05/03/2022 8:49 am
By: Tobias Utz
A scandal broke out in international airspace off the island of Rügen: German Air Force Eurofighters pushed a Russian military aircraft away.
Rügen – A Russian military aircraft put the German Air Force on alert over the weekend.
According to the dpa, a reconnaissance machine flew over the Baltic Sea.
In response, the German Air Force had two Eurofighters take off from Laage Air Base (Mecklenburg-West Pomerania).
The Russian machine had been identified in international airspace off the island of Rügen, it said.
The Eurofighters then accompanied the Russian reconnaissance aircraft on Saturday (April 30) in international airspace away from Germany.
Denmark had already summoned the Russian ambassador to the Foreign Ministry for an interview.
Foreign Minister Jeppe Kofod justified the measure on Sunday (May 1) by saying that a Russian military aircraft had also entered Danish airspace.
Ukraine war: Eurofighters push Russian military aircraft off the island of Rügen
According to Swedish information, a Russian AN-30 propeller aircraft also violated Swedish airspace east of the Danish Baltic Sea island of Bornholm.
Italian Air Force Eurofighter.
(Symbol photo) © Italian Ministry Of Defense Hand/Imago Images
Four Russian fighter jets entered the airspace over Sweden in early March.
Since the Russian invasion of Ukraine more than two months ago, there have been intensive discussions in Sweden and in neighboring Finland about joining NATO.
Russia has repeatedly warned the two northernmost states of the EU against such a step.
Denmark is already a member of the western military alliance.
Meanwhile, the diplomatic situation in the Ukraine war remains tense: an oil embargo against Russia is in the air, Russia's Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov has caused outrage with a Nazi comparison, and Nancy Pelosi is traveling to Kyiv.
(tu/dpa)