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Polish warplanes have intercepted a Russian reconnaissance aircraft operating near its airspace over the Baltic Sea, the country’s military confirmed on Thursday. This incident has happened when countries on the eastern side of NATO are on high alert for possible intrusion into their airspace.
It follows the violation of Estonian airspace by three Russian military jets for 12 minutes in September, just days after more than 20 Russian drones entered Polish airspace.
“This morning, in the international waters of the Baltic Sea, Polish fighter jets intercepted, spotted and escorted a Russian reconnaissance aircraft flying near the boundaries of Polish airspace out of their area of ​​responsibility,” the military said.
It also said that objects were seen entering Polish airspace from the direction of Belarus at night.
“After detailed analysis, it was determined that these were possibly smuggled balloons, moving according to the direction and speed of the wind,” the Army said. It said part of the airspace in the Podlaskie region of northeastern Poland, which borders Belarus, was temporarily closed to civil traffic to ensure security.
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said Russian President Vladimir Putin on Thursday wished US President Donald Trump a Merry Christmas and sent him a congratulatory message.
Putin is not expected to speak to Trump on Thursday, he said, adding that no such call is scheduled.
Meanwhile, the General Staff said on Thursday that Ukrainian forces attacked the Novoshakhtinsk oil refinery in Russia’s Rostov region with Storm Shadow missiles, causing multiple explosions.
The Novoshakhtinsk refinery is one of the largest oil product suppliers in southern Russia and is involved in supplying Russian troops, the General Staff said in a statement on the Telegram app.