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Russian warplanes' flights carried out in accordance with international practice — Kremlin

Russian presidential spokesman Dmitry Peskov in an interview with CNN reminded that NATO planes are also conducting flights in international corridors

NEW YORK, February 26. /TASS/. Russian military planes carry out flights over neutral waters in accordance with international practice, Russian presidential spokesman Dmitry Peskov told CNN in a telephone interview broadcast on Wednesday.

"Every time they start to make buzz about Russian jets planes or military planes navigating in international corridors, every time they make that buzz, willingly or unwillingly they forget to mention NATO planes, British planes, and American planes doing the same in the same corridor," Peskov noted.

"So it's international practice, it's internationally agreed. It's internationally observed. And it's internationally accepted. Let's remember that," he stressed.

At the end of January, Britain summoned the Russian ambassador for explanations of Russian military planes’ flights over the English Channel near the UK territory. Russia’s Defense Ministry said that "all flights of the Russian Air Force have been carried out and are carried out in strict compliance with international rules of using airspace over international waters without violating the borders of other countries."

Resuming cooperation with West

International cooperation between Russia and the West may resume when the West accepts Moscow’s position on Ukraine, Peskov told CNN.

Answering a question about a possible thaw in relations between Russia and the West, Peskov said: "We have witnessed a tremendous clash of interests, collapse of interests in the heart of Europe, in Ukraine."

"So in the front of illegitimate armed takeover, armed coup that occurred in Kiev one year ago, Russia took a position - quite understandable one - but very, very frank, very open and very firm," the spokesman stressed. "As soon as this position is accepted with understanding, I think that we all will be ready to resume our cooperation or interaction that we all desperately need in order to be effective in combating challenges that we will face," he added.

The spokesman noted that differences over Ukraine have already led to deterioration in cooperation in the key spheres. "Right now, unfortunately, we don’t have any cooperation in very sensitive fields like combating terror, like whatever. And a single country cannot be effective," Peskov said. "At the same time, Russia cannot move behind the red line in terms of presuming and ensuring its own national interests," he stressed.

"The only thing we want is that our national interests, our sovereign rights and sovereign interests ... [are] treated with due respect. And soon as it happens, there will be a time for new Renaissance in [our] international relationship," Peskov concluded.