Russian aircraft intercepts U.S. jet three times in three hours
CNN)A Russian aircraft intercepted a US aircraft flying in international airspace over the Mediterranean Sea three times in just under three hours Tuesday, according to the US 6th Fleet.
"On June 4, 2019, a U.S. P-8A Poseidon aircraft flying in international airspace over the Mediterranean Sea was intercepted by a Russian SU-35 three times over the course of 175 minutes," the 6th Fleet said in a statement Tuesday.
The second of the three interactions "was determined to be unsafe" due to the Russian aircraft "conducting a high speed pass directly in front of the mission aircraft, which put our pilots and crew at risk," it said.
The American aircraft was maintaining international standards and "did not provoke this Russian activity," the statement continued.
"While the Russian aircraft was operating in international airspace, this interaction was irresponsible. We expect them to behave within international standards set to ensure safety and to prevent incidents," the 6th Fleet wrote, adding that "unsafe actions? increase the risk of miscalculation and potential for midair collisions."
The Russian military on Wednesday disputed the US Navy's characterization of the intercept as unsafe.
This latest intercept comes amid tensions with Russia on a wide range of geopolitical issues and weeks after Secretary of State Mike Pompeo met Russian Vladimir Putin in the resort town of Sochi where he warned Russia about interfering in US elections, taking a tougher public line than President Donald Trump on the issue.
The interaction also just weeks after another brush with Russian aircraft.
Read more: https://www.cnn.com/2019/06/04/politics/russia-us-aircraft-mediterranean/index.html
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