Moscow shows its teeth and threatens the US with direct confrontation
Recently, Russian fighter jets were dispatched to "intercept" US bombers that came a little too close to the border with the Russian Federation.
While the US military regularly flies over international waters, in neutral space, two of their strategic bombers were moved away from the Russian border, over the Barents Sea in the Arctic. Moscow does not like these exercises, so Russia is sharpening its reactions and warning that these flights could lead to a "direct" military confrontation.
"The Russian warplanes identified the aerial target as two US Air Force B-52H strategic bombers," the Russian Defence Ministry said. "As the Russian warplanes approached, the US strategic bombers corrected their flight path, moving away from the Russian border and then turning away," the ministry continued.
In June, Moscow suspected the US of using its reconnaissance drones over neutral Black Sea waters to facilitate Ukrainian attacks on the Russian-ruled Crimean Peninsula, France's Midi Libre reported. The Russian defence ministry said at the time that these flights increased the risk of a "direct confrontation" between NATO and Russia. An operational response is currently being prepared.
(SR and Manon Pierre for Tagtik/Source: Midi Libre/Illustration: Unsplash)
