Three Russian MiG-31 all-weather supersonic fighter-interceptors of the Russian Aerospace Forces allegedly violated Estonian airspace for 12 minutes. The incident lasted and occurred on September 19. The government of the Baltic country called it an "unprecedentedly brazen" invasion, Reuters writes.
According to the agency, the Russian fighters were intercepted by NATO aircraft.
Russia has already violated Estonian airspace four times this year, which in itself is unacceptable.
The Russian Ministry of Defense denied the statements of the Estonian authorities. The department explained that the MiG-31s were performing a scheduled flight from Karelia to the Kaliningrad region. The route of the fighter-interceptors ran over the neutral waters of the Baltic Sea.
The planes were moving at a distance of more than 3 km from the island of Vaindlo and did not deviate from the course. The MiG-31 pilots did not violate international rules for the use of airspace and did not invade the borders of other states. This is confirmed by objective monitoring tools, the ministry summarized.