Swedish and Finnish fighter jets were scrambled on alert yesterday to intercept Russian military aircraft in international airspace over the Gulf of Finland, the Finnish Air Force said today, quoted by Reuters.
The mission was carried out under the Finnish-Swedish framework for joint surveillance and protection of the two countries' skies, the statement added.
Fighters from the two countries' combat aviation tracked and identified a group of Russian aircraft, including a transport plane and several fighter jets, the Finnish military said.
NATO is stepping up intelligence sharing amid a wave of sabotage and other incidents believed to be linked to Russia. But the alliance must be "calm and confident" that it can deal with any threat from Moscow, General Alexis Grinkevich, the supreme allied commander in Europe, told Reuters on Monday.
Grinkevich made his comments after Denmark's military intelligence service warned that Russia was likely to step up hybrid warfare against the West in the coming months - a term that encompasses various types of attacks that fall short of a conventional military attack.
The Danish service added that there was a "small but growing risk" Moscow to launch a limited military attack on one or more NATO countries bordering Russia.
“This is worrying“, Grinkevich said, referring to a series of incidents in recent weeks, including an attempted drone attack on Germany's Leipzig/Halle airport and a Russian ship firing flares at a Danish military helicopter.
“But we must be calm and confident that as an alliance - the most powerful alliance in history - we have the necessary means and mechanisms to manage this risk,” he added.
Moscow has repeatedly denied any involvement in hybrid or sabotage operations in NATO countries, or planning a confrontation.