US, Canada Intercept Russian Military Planes at Border

Local Editor

American and Canadian military reported intercepting Russian military aircraft near Alaska and Canada this week. Neither country's airspace was violated.

There were two separate incidents involving Russian military planes near North America. On Wednesday, two Mig-31 fighter jets were spotted in a US air identification zone [ADIZ] off the Alaska coast, with the US Air Force scrambling two F-22 jets to intercept them. The US also identified two Tu-95 long-range bombers and two Il-78 refueling tankers nearby.

On Thursday, two Russian Tu-95 bombers flew into Canada's ADIZ and were intercepted by two Canadian F-18 jets.
ADIZ is a zone projecting from a country's coastline closely monitored by the military for possible threats. The US and Canada ADIZ extends some 200 miles into the sea.

Since Russia renewed long-range air missions for its air force, Russian military aircraft have regularly flown near the US. In the past five years, the US has scrambled its fighter jets some 50 times to shadow the Russians, said John Cornelio, spokesman for NORAD and NORTHCOM.

"We do not see these flights as a threat," he said.

The Russian aircraft flights coincided with a visit by Ukraine's President Petro Poroshenko to Washington, where he made an impassioned address Thursday before a joint session of the US Congress, denouncing "Russia's military intervention in his country".

But Pentagon spokesman Rear Admiral John Kirby said there was no indication of a link between Poroshenko's visit to Washington and the air incidents.
"We've faced these kinds of incidents before. We take them very, very seriously. And we routinely intercept them," Kirby told CNN.

"We'll make our intentions known to Russia as we always do and we'll certainly discuss our concerns with them at the appropriate time and in the appropriate venue."

Some media linked the encounters with the annual Vostok military exercise currently underway in Russia's east.

Source: News Agencies, Edited by website team