Finnish and Swedish fighter jets scrambled for the first time on Sept. 24 to intercept supersonic Russian military aircraft flying over the Gulf of Finland, marking a major milestone in Nordic defense cooperation amid heightened tensions with Moscow.
The mission also came one day before Russian President Vladimir Putin dismissed European warnings about the threat from Moscow in the region and mocked Estonia’s new defense minister over the Baltic state’s preparations for a potential Russian attack.
Finnish F/A-18 Hornets and Swedish JAS 39 Gripens were scrambled after Russian aircraft were detected in the international airspace, according to the Swedish Armed Forces.
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The Russian formation included a Tu-134 transport plane, a high-altitude, supersonic MiG-31 interceptors designed to detect and engage long-range threats; and Su-30 multirole fighter jets which are designed for air-to-air and air-to-ground combat.
“This is what close cooperation looks like in practice,” Maj. Gen. Jonas Wikman, commander of the Swedish Air Force, said in a statement following the joint operation.
“Built over years on trust and strong personal relationships, we can now operate seamlessly together — as air forces, as nations and as Allies.”
Concern over Russian military activity along NATO’s eastern flank has grown following a string of airspace violations.
These include Russian drones entering Polish airspace, a Mi-8 helicopter crossing from Kaliningrad into Poland, drones crashing in Romania and Moldova, and armed Russian jets entering Estonian airspace before being intercepted by NATO aircraft on Sept. 18.
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In Estonia, Defense Minister Martin Herem warned that Russia could be capable of using military force against Estonia within a year and argued that Tallinn must determine whether its defenses are sufficient for such a scenario.
Prime Minister Kristen Michal stated that the government is ready to shut down border crossing points on short notice if threat assessments change, according to reports.
Speaking at the St. Petersburg International United Cultures Forum on Friday, Putin pushed back against such warnings.
“Many people in Europe say they expect an attack from Russia and therefore claim they must prepare for war with Russia,” Putin said.
“I want to emphasize once again: we are not preparing for military action against Europe. We have no such plans, no basis for them, and, most importantly, no real motive to escalate the situation with Europe.”
Putin then mocked Herem’s warnings: “As we jokingly say in Russia: ‘The circus has left, but the clowns remain.’ It is political clowning. … Clearly, these statements are complete nonsense and absurdity,” Putin said, according to EurAsia Daily.
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Estonia sits across the Gulf of Finland from Finland, with the three countries forming part of NATO’s increasingly integrated northern and eastern defenses amid concerns about Russian military activity.
Finland formally joined NATO as its 31st member in April 2023, roughly doubling the alliance’s land border with Russia. Sweden followed as the 32nd member in March 2024. Estonia, which regained independence from the Soviet Union in 1991, has been a NATO member since 2004.
The Baltic Sea region has also remained on heightened alert following incidents involving gas pipelines, sabotage and hybrid threats since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in 2022, Reuters has reported.
NATO said in June that it was enhancing protection of its eastern members in the cyber and space domains while helping countries build resilience against what it describes as hostile Russian actions, including cyberattacks, sabotage and airspace violations.
NATO says its military activities along the eastern flank are entirely defensive and that it is “ready, willing and able to defend every Ally.”
The alliance has said an attack against any member would be met with a “resounding response.”
NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte recently underscored Washington’s role in the alliance during a visit to Iowa, telling The Associated Press that Putin “knows that the United States and Europe are totally intertwined.”
“We have to make sure that we are prepared, we are strong, and he knows it,” Rutte said.
“And if he does anything silly, he knows our reaction will be tough,” he warned.
European intelligence officials said Sept. 24 that Russia could test NATO’s defenses.
Denmark’s Defense Intelligence Service assessed the risk of a limited Russian military attack against a NATO country in the coming months as “low but growing” and said Moscow is expected to intensify its hybrid campaign against NATO and the West.
The service said in a statement that a full-scale Russian invasion of a NATO member remains highly unlikely but can no longer be ruled out.