MOSCOW, February 23. /TASS/. A US Air Force plane will finish the observation flight over Russia that started on February 18 within the framework of the Treaty on Open Skies on Saturday, the Russian Defense Ministry informed.
Earlier, the PlaneRadar monitoring portal informed that a US Air Force plane flew over Russia near the city of Chita.
The Russian Defense Ministry informed that the observation flights are scheduled until February 23, adding that there are Russian representatives on board monitoring "the strict observance of the agreed parameters of the flight and the use of surveillance equipment."
About Open Skies Treaty
Developed with Moscow’s active participation, the Treaty on Open Skies was signed in 1992 and came into force in 2002. It currently has 34 member states. The treaty establishes a program of unarmed aerial surveillance flights over the entire territory of its participants. Observation flights are made over the territories of the United States, Canada, European countries, and Russia. The main purposes of the open skies regime are to develop transparency, render assistance in monitoring compliance with the existing or future arms control agreements, broaden possibilities for preventing crises and managing crisis situations within the scope of the Organizations for Security and Cooperation in Europe and other relevant international organizations. Subsequently, it is contemplated to apply the open skies regime to new fields, such as environmental protection.
In practical terms, the treaty allows signatory states to perform observations flights over any part of the observed state party’s territory to monitor military activities in conformity with the agreed quotas of such missions. The treaty regulates observation flights procedures, establishes a mechanism of control over its observance, sets requirements to the aircraft and observation equipment.