Japan fighter jets INTERCEPT Russian supersonic
bomber near North Korea JAPANESE fighter jets have been scrambled
to head off a Russian supersonic bomber flying off the coast of North Korea, air traffic
monitors show. The Japan Air Self-Defense Force (JASDF) has
deployed fighter jets to escort the Russian aircraft over the Sea of Japan, according
to military aircraft tracking maps. The Russian Sukhoi Su-24, a supersonic, all-weather
attack aircraft, flew close to Japanese airspace, near the city of Wajima, Ishikawa, before
turning back towards Vladivostock, a major port city that borders with North Korea. The JASDF is yet to release a statement about
the operation in the politically tense area of the Asia Pacific.
The flight comes just days after two Russian
supersonic heavy bombers flew less than 35 miles from British airspace. Flying an Su-24 over the Sea of Japan is the
latest example of Russian leader Vladimir Putin flexing his military muscles amid tensions
with western countires, namely the US. Russian Su-24s, known by the NATO codename
"Fencer", are front-line bombers designed to carry out precision strikes against ground
and surface targets in any weather conditions. Developed under the Soviet Union, Su-24s are
blisting with weapons, including radar-homing missileswith a range of 90km.
Russia has form for dispatching military planes
for provocative flights over the Sea of Japan a region the US regularly stations its
largest aircraft carriers. Chuguyevka, in the eastern Russian region
of Primorski Krai, is the closest military air base to the region. In November last year, Russia sent its reconnaissance
jets on a series of military drills, stretching to the maximum range permitted in the
Sea of Japan. Russia borders North Korea and has been in
peace talks with its regime and US-ally South Korea.
Russia has repeatedly voiced concerns about
rising tensions on the Korean peninsula caused by Pyongyangs nuclear missile program..
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