Finland and Sweden scramble jets to intercept Russian aircraft over Gulf of Finland

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25, 2026 Share on Facebook Share on X Share by email --> SWEDISH AIR FORCE/FINNISH AIR FORCE/HANDOUT VIA REUTERS Russian Su-30 fighter jets fly in the international airspace over the Gulf of Finland on Thursday. The Baltic Sea region, of which the Gulf of Finland is part, is on high alert after incidents involving gas pipeline outages, airspace violations and drone sightings since Russia's 2022 full-scale invasion of Ukraine. Swedish Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson said the operation, which took place on Thursday, showed how the so-called Quick Reaction Alert cooperation could monitor and safeguard both countries' airspace.

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• "The Baltic Sea has never been as vulnerable as it is now – but it has also never been better protected than it is right now," he said.
• The two air forces' jets tracked down and identified a group of Russian aircraft including a transport plane and several fighter jets, the Finnish Air Force said.
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• Helsinki did not immediately respond to requests for comment when contacted by Reuters.

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An insightful discussion of ideas and viewpoints is encouraged, but comments must be civil and in good taste, with no personal attacks. forces exit Iraq after two decades, leaving opening for Iran Maui police identify driver in fatal Lahaina crash Anthropic warns AI may pose 'existential risks to humanity' Supreme Court lets Trump resume third-country deportations Moped rider, 57, dies weeks after Ewa Beach collision Looking Back August 1950: Their Nordic neighbours Norway, Iceland and Denmark were already members of the Atlantic alliance, as were the three Baltic republics of Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania.

Details worth keeping

STOCKHOLM >> Finland and Sweden said on Friday they had scrambled fighter jets to intercept and identify Russian military aircraft in international airspace over the Gulf of Finland, in the first such joint operation by the two Nordic countries. "It is a concrete expression of the readiness and trust we have built together – and an expression of the strength in the Nordic, Nordic-Baltic, and broader NATO cooperation in our part of the world," Kristersson wrote in a post on social media X.

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