by Vijeta Uniyal at legalinsurrection.com
“Ukraine’s air force claimed Saturday to have downed a Russian hypersonic missile over Kyiv using newly acquired American Patriot defense systems.”
As Russia’s war on Ukraine rages on for more than 14 months, the conflict increasingly threatens to bring Moscow and U.S.-led NATO alliance into a direct military conflict.
This week, a Russian fighter plane engaged a Polish aircraft over the Black Sea, European media outlets reported Sunday afternoon. According to these reports, a Russian Sukhoi fighter jet on Friday attempted to intercept a Polish transport aircraft operating on behalf of the European Union’s border authority, Frontex.
“A Russian SU-35 jet carried out “aggressive and dangerous manoeuvres” approaching the Polish aircraft without keeping a secure distance, leading to turbulence, loss of altitude and a temporary loss of control of the plane by the Polish crew,” Reuters news agency reported citing official Polish sources.
This is not the first time Russia and Poland have been at loggerheads with each other since the beginning of the Ukraine war. In November 2022, an escalation involving the West was feared when a soviet-made missile landed on a Polish farm, killing two people. The missile turned out to be an errant Ukrainian missile. A military confrontation between Russia and Poland could trigger Article 5 of the NATO treaty, which provides for collective defense if a member nation faces “armed attack” for outside.
Sky News reported the details of the incident:
A European Union border guard aircraft was on patrol over the Black Sea when a Russian SU-35 carried out “aggressive and dangerous manoeuvres”, according to a border guard spokesperson.
The Polish aircraft temporarily lost control after the Russian plane crossed in front of it – just five metres from its nose – leading to turbulence and a loss of altitude, Anna Michalska said.
The Russian jet approached the Polish crew three times before flying away, she added.
Romanian and Spanish combat aircraft were put on standby to intervene, but this did not prove necessary.
The Romanian defence ministry said the behaviour was completely unacceptable and was evidence of Russia’s “provocative” attitude in international airspace over the Black Sea.