Today, Poland released details of a serious provocation by Russian aircraft, carried out against its surveillance plane – an L-410 Turbolet flying over international waters in the Black Sea. The Russian jet passed within 5metres of the aircraft, causing it to lose control, potentially with catastrophic consequences. Luckily, the aircraft was able to safely make an emergency landing in Romania. European leaders alleged that the move was dangerous and aggressive.
Clearly this type of behaviour will do nothing to improve relations between the East and the West, and had the Russian jet collided and caused the Polish aircraft to crash, could easily start a war between the East and the West – something that is feared for it’s potential to easily escalate out of control into a nuclear confrontation.
Photo courtesy of Roman Zelentsov (CC BY-SA 3.0)