German fighter jets have been scrambled to intercept a Russian Il-20 reconnaissance plane over the Baltic Sea close to NATO airspace on the morning of June 27, the German tabloid Bild reported.
The incident provides to a sequence of aerial provocations reported by NATO allies for the reason that begin of Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022 as Moscow is suspected of utilizing the plane to spy on the alliance's positions.
The Russian Il-20M, which took off from Kaliningrad with its transponder switched off, was headed west towards worldwide airspace close to Poland and Germany when it was detected by NATO radar techniques.
NATO alerted the German Armed Forces’ Fast Response Group (QRT), prompting the launch of two Eurofighter jets to intercept the plane.
The German jets made visible contact with the Russian airplane roughly 100 kilometers off the German coast and took {a photograph} of it. Regardless of the interception, the Il-20M didn’t alter its course.
The Russian plane ultimately veered north, simply 40 kilometers from the Baltic Sea island of Usedom, avoiding a breach of German airspace.
In accordance with Bild, this was the ninth such interception mission performed by German forces in 2025.
As Russia continues its aggression towards Ukraine and poses an rising risk to NATO, German Chancellor Friedrich Merz stated in an interview with Süddeutsche Zeitung printed on June 27 that he would chorus from cellphone calls with Russian President Vladimir Putin given the intensified assaults on Ukraine.
Merz’s predecessor, Olaf Scholz, was the primary EU chief from a rustic supporting Ukraine to renew direct contact with Putin for the reason that begin of the full-scale invasion, talking with him by cellphone in November 2024.
The Kyiv IndependentKateryna Denisova