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Russian military inspectors to hold observation flight over the United States this week

It will be Russia’s second observation flight over the territory of the United States this month within the frames of the Open Skies Treaty

MOSCOW, May 27. /TASS/. A group of Russian military inspectors will carry out this week an observation flight over the territory of the United States within the frames of the international Open Skies Treaty, Krasnaya Zvezda daily reported on Monday citing a senior Russian Defense Ministry official.

The head of the Russian Defense Ministry’s National Nuclear Risk Reduction Center, Sergey Ryzhkov, said the observation flight over the United States would be carried out on board of Tu-154M-LK-1 aircraft between May 28 and June 3.

The observation mission of the Russian inspectors will start from the Wright-Patterson Air Force Base in Dayton, Ohio, and the estimated flight range stands at 4,900 kilometers (over 3,000 miles).

It will be Russia’s second observation flight over the territory of the United States this month within the frames of the Open Skies Treaty. The first inspection mission was held between May 12 and 20.

The Open Skies Treaty was signed in 1992 and has 34 member states. It entered into force in 2002. Surveillance flights are conducted over Russia, the United States, Canada and European countries.

The key tasks of the treaty are to develop transparency, monitor the fulfillment of armament control agreements, and expand capabilities to prevent crises in the framework of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) and other international organizations.