Russia warns Britain against planned spy plane overflight

Associated Press
Updated ·1 min read
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MOSCOW (AP) — Russia's Defense Ministry warned Britain Tuesday against a planned spy plane flight over Russian territory, saying the country's air force has been given orders to prevent an intrusion.

The tough statement comes amid tensions between Russia and the West over Moscow's action in Ukraine.

The ministry said that Britain has sent a notice informing about a planned flight of an RC-135 reconnaissance plane along a route that partly passes over Russian territory.

“We regard this action as a deliberate provocation,” the ministry said, adding that the Russian air force has been “given the task to prevent the violation of the Russian border.”

"All possible consequences of this deliberate provocation will lie entirely with the British side,” the ministry said in a statement, without specifying when and where the British flight was planned.

On Monday, the ministry said a Russian fighter jet was scrambled to intercept a British RC-135 reconnaissance plane that crossed the Russian border near the Svyatoi Nos cape between the Barents and the White Seas. The MiG-31 fighter forced the intruder out, the ministry said.