US and Canada scramble fighter jets to intercept Russian planes off Alaska
The North American Aerospace Defense Command (NORAD) scrambled jets on Wednesday to intercept four Russian military planes off Alaska.
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The US and Canadian defence organisation tracked two Tu-95s and two Su-35s operating in the Alaskan Air Defense Identification Zone (ADIZ).
NORAD responded with an E-3, four F-16s, and four KC-135 tankers to identify and intercept in the zone.
A NORAD spokesperson said: "The Russian military aircraft remained in international airspace and did not enter American or Canadian sovereign airspace.
"This Russian activity in the Alaskan ADIZ occurs regularly and is not seen as a threat.
"NORAD remains ready to employ a number of response options in defense of North America."
It comes amid rising tensions as Russia tests the boundaries of NATO countries in Eastern Europe with drone incursions.
The Polish deputy PM Radosław Sikorski has warned his country will "do what is necessary" to combat Russian aggression as he refused to rule out shooting down Kremlin drones and jets.
Speaking to LBC’s Andrew Marr, Mr Sikorski, who is also the Polish foreign minister, slammed Russian aggression in the wake of a slew of incursions by Kremlin jets and drones into NATO territory.
Mr Sikorski’s comments come after Donald Trump called on NATO countries to shoot down any Russian jets that enter their airspace.
When asked if Poland would follow Mr Trump’s advice and shoot down any further Russian aircraft that enter its airspace, Mr Sikorski said: "We will do what's necessary.
"We don't seek it, but it's the Russians who are probing our airspace. And as you know, they fly hostile missions around the British Isles.
"Their ships are conducting surveillance and perhaps these drone launches in the Danish Straits are a part of that. It is Russia that is invading its neighbours, not us."
When pressed on whether Russia’s testing of NATO airspace could lead to a wider European war, he added: "Well, I hope not, but we don't control that."