Poland intercepts Russian plane whose actions posed a threat

Polish fighter jets intercepted a Russian Su-24 bomber in international airspace over the Baltic Sea on Thursday 22 May.

Source: Polish Defence Minister Władysław Kosiniak-Kamysz during a press conference on Friday 23 May, quoted by RMF24, as reported by European Pravda

Details: Kosiniak-Kamysz said that on the evening of Thursday 22 May, the Allied Command Operations of NATO forces in Europe ordered another Polish pair of fighter jets to intercept a Russian Su-24 bomber.

He said that the Russian aircraft had been carrying out dangerous manoeuvres in international airspace over the Baltic Sea.

"These actions were deliberate and posed a threat," the minister said.

Kosiniak-Kamysz reported that the Polish pilots were able to detect, intercept and effectively push back the Russian aircraft.

The Polish defence minister also commented on Russia's frequent provocations in the airspace near NATO's borders – especially due to the geographical location of Kaliningrad Oblast, from where Russian aircraft often fly without their transponders switched on and without submitting flight plans or contacting air traffic control.

"We are resilient to provocations, but we react decisively, both independently and within the framework of the Alliance," Kosiniak-Kamysz stressed.

Background:

• On 21 May, Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk said that a Russian shadow fleet vessel had made suspicious manoeuvres near a power cable connecting Poland and Sweden.
• A few days ago, the Estonian Navy attempted to stop the Jaguar, a tanker which was passing through international waters in the Gulf of Finland towards the port of Primorsk. The vessel is believed to belong to the Russian shadow fleet.
• According to available information, the tanker's crew refused to comply with the Estonian border guards' instructions, and the vessel left Estonian territorial waters.
• In response to the actions of Estonian forces, Russia sent a fighter jet which, according to Estonia, violated the country's airspace.

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