A Russian jet is believed to have violated the nation’s airspace, the Finnish Defense Ministry reported on August 18.
Two Russian MiG-31 fighter jets are alleged to have violated national airspace on the morning of August 18 close to the coastal city of Porvoo on the Gulf of Finland, according to the Finnish Ministry of Defense.
The incident allegedly occurred at 6:40 a.m. GMT, according to communications director Kristian Vakkuri, who spoke to Reuters. The two Russian aircraft “flew west and hovered in Finnish airspace for around two minutes.” They allegedly travelled roughly one kilometre into Finnish airspace.
The jets had been spotted by the air force, according to Finland’s defence ministry, and a “violation” was being investigated by border guards.
About 150 kilometres separate Porvoo from the Russian border.
As Finland and Sweden debated joining the North Atlantic Treaty Organization, the Finnish Ministry of Defense claimed in early May that a Russian military helicopter had violated their airspace (NATO).
The Russian Mi-17 helicopter “reached Finnish airspace around 4-5 miles,” a spokeswoman for the Finnish defence ministry said.
An earlier report claimed that on April 8, a Russian military civilian transport jet entered Finnish airspace.
The same day, the Russian Defense Ministry announced that it has just sent three MiG-31E fighter jets outfitted with Kinzhal hypersonic missiles to Kaliningrad, a portion of Russia’s Baltic coast situated between Poland and Lithuania.
The Russian Defense Ministry was quoted by the news agency RIA Novosti as claiming that the MiG-31E fighters would conduct flights around-the-clock.
When Lithuania chose to restrict the flow of commodities into the region through its borders, Kaliningrad became a “hot point,” which prompted Russia to threaten reprisal.
Since Russia sent tens of thousands of soldiers into Ukraine in a “Military operation ” six months ago, tensions in the region have risen.
