Swedish Gripen planes were forced up to reject the Russian warplane that violated Swedish territory. This is stated by the air force commander for TV4 Nyheterna.
– We warned the Russian warplane via radio, says Air Force Chief Jonas Wikman.
A Russian plane violated Swedish airspace on Friday and two Jas planes were forced up to repel it.
The Swedish broadside squadron, which consists of two Gripen aircraft, was in the air at the time and was able to follow the Russian aircraft from Swedish territory, according to Air Force Chief Jonas Wikman.
– We were able to follow a Russian aircraft for a longer period of time thanks to the fact that we have control over the air situation through our radars, says Jonas Wikman to TV4 Nyheterna.
The Russian ambassador is summoned
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs will call up the Russian ambassador to mark the incident, says Foreign Minister Tobias Billström.
Foreign Minister Tobias Billström (M) calls the incident unacceptable.
“The Russian behavior is unacceptable. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs will call the Russian Embassy to mark the incident. We are in close contact with allies and partners about events in the immediate area,” he writes to TT.
Defense Minister Pål Jonson (M) was informed of the violation and comments in writing: “The Russian action is unacceptable and unprofessional. It is good that the Swedish Armed Forces’ incident response intervened and rejected the Russian fighter plane.”