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Foreign fighters escort Russian Tu-160 bombers over Baltic Sea

Two Tu-160 bombers of Russia’s long-range aviation performed a scheduled flight that lasted about eight hours

Russian Tu-160 strategic missile-carrying bomber Russian Ministry of Defense Press Office/TASS

Russian Tu-160 strategic missile-carrying bomber

© Russian Ministry of Defense Press Office/TASS

MOSCOW, June 15. /TASS/. Two Russian Tu-160 strategic missile-carrying bombers performed a scheduled flight over the neutral waters of the Baltic Sea and were escorted by fighter aircrafts of Italy, Denmark and Sweden at some sections of their flight, Russia’s Defense Ministry reported on Tuesday.

Two Tu-160 bombers of Russia’s long-range aviation performed a scheduled flight over the neutral waters of the Baltic Sea that lasted about eight hours, the ministry said in a statement.

"The crews of Su-35S aircraft of the Aerospace Force and Su-27 planes of the Baltic Fleet’s naval aviation provided fighter support. At some stages of their route, the Russian strategic missile-carrying bombers were escorted by F-35 fighters of the Italian Air Force, F-16 fighters of the Danish Air Force and Saab JAS 35 Gripen fighters of the Swedish Air Force," the statement says.

The crews of Russian long-range aircraft regularly perform flights over the neutral waters of the Arctic, the North Atlantic, the Black and Baltic Seas and the Pacific Ocean, Russia’s Defense Ministry said.

The aircraft of Russia’s Aerospace Force perform all their flights in strict compliance with the international rules of using the airspace, the ministry stressed.

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