Russia accuses British reconnaissance aircraft of border violation

People walk along an embankment of the Moskva River with the Russian Defense Ministry on the background in Moscow on Feb 22, 2022. (DIMITAR DILKOFF / AFP)

MOSCOW – An RC-135 reconnaissance plane of the British Royal Air Force illegally crossed Russia's state border in the Arctic area of Cape Svyatoy Nos, the Russian Defense Ministry said on Monday.

The British aircraft was discovered over the waters of the Barents Sea, and a MiG-31BM fighter scrambled in response and forced the plane out of the Russian territory, the ministry said.

It was rare for military planes of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization to breach Russia's airspace, news reports said.  

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