Six Russian aircraft were stopped above the Baltic region this week following NATO disrupted its aircraft during an aerial surveillance operation.
On Tuesday, two French fighter jets left the Šiauliai Air Base in Lithuania together with two Swedish aircraft, as part of an operation to carry out multiple intercepts involving six Russian planes flying within the Baltic Area of Responsibility, according to the NATO Air Command.
Russian military aircraft included a Sukhoi Su-35 jet, an Ilyushin Il-76 cargo plane, a Sukhoi Su-24 attack bomber, a Sukhoi Su-34 multirole bomber, an Antonov An-12 transport vehicle, and an Antonov An-30 surveillance aircraft.
Photos released by the NATO air headquarters depicted French aircraft monitoring the airspace while Russian fighters passed overhead.
It is the most recent center of conflict between Russia and NATO, and this occurs as Ukrainian troops seem to be starting to gain an advantage on the front lines.
The Baltic Air Surveillance Operation safeguards the skies over the three Baltic countries – Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania – via rotational postings of NATO fighter aircraft.
Airplanes are dispatched to intercept unknown or non-adherent planes.
The photographs emerge after the French military representative stated on Thursday that their aircraft were deployed 11 times during the past week as part of the monitoring operation, referring to the breaches as an above-average level of 'provocative actions.'
Guillaume Vernet mentioned during a weekly press conference that the unexpectedly large number of intercepts might indicate that Moscow was attempting to demonstrate its power at a time when it was hosting its annual Saint Petersburg International Economic Forum.
"The French unit involved in the Baltic Air Policing operation conducted several encounters with Russian military planes that were operating without flight plans or communication via radio," Vernet stated, noting that the planes intercepted included combat fighter jets, surveillance aircraft, and transport planes.
Subsequent events come after multiple instances where military drones entered the air space of Finland, Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania, raising concerns that the conflict in Ukraine might spread to NATO's northern frontiers near Russia.
Following France's naval forces stopping a restricted tanker associated with the Russian oil business in the Atlantic Ocean this week and directing the ship to travel towards the French coast.
French President Emmanuel Macron shared a clip on X on Monday depicting commandos descending from helicopters onto the Tagor, as part of an action carried out the day before in international waters located 400 miles off the coast of Brittany.
"Ships should not bypass international sanctions, breach maritime laws, and support the conflict that Russia has been conducting against Ukraine for over four years," Macron stated on X.
The Kremlin spokesperson, Dmitry Peskov, stated that Russia did not believe international law was adhered to.
"Such actions are considered unlawful; they verge on international piracy," Peskov said to journalists, noting that Russia will implement steps to safeguard maritime freight following the incident.
A Russian Foreign Ministry spokesperson named Maria Zakharova stated later that the French move, which referenced international law, represented "another instance of European legal nihilism and altering the rules for their own advantage."
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