“Not acceptable”, according to the French Minister of the Armed Forces

The targeting of a French maritime patrol plane by a Russian army radar while flying over the Baltic Sea constitutes a measure « d’intimidation » who is not “not acceptable”said French Minister of the Armed Forces, Sébastien Lecornu, on Friday January 17.

This French navy plane committed to NATO, on board which was an AFP journalist, was targeted on Wednesday by the Russian army while it was flying over the Baltic Sea, we learned on Thursday from French military source. The French Navy’s Atlantic-2, which was carrying out a surveillance flight as part of NATO’s Baltic Sentry operation in response to damage to submarine cables, of which Russia is suspected, was the victim of a “jamming attempt” as well as a “designation by a fire control radar”according to a communication from the French army.

“The fact of “illuminating” our aircraft operating in international waters with radar reflects an aggressive action”Colonel Guillaume Vernet, spokesperson for the army general staff, explained to AFP, illumination qualifying in military language the fact of targeting an objective by radar. Such an initiative “is not exceptional in this area” et “means that Russia does not remain passive”he translated.

“This aggressive Russian action is not acceptable”

This plane was “the target of Russian intimidation measures”estimates the minister on X. “It was patrolling international airspace over the Baltic Sea (…), and was illuminated by the fire control radar of an S400 surface-to-air defense system. » “This aggressive Russian action is not acceptable”he declares.

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“Our armies will continue to act to defend freedom of navigation in international air and maritime spaces”he adds.

Russia has thus “makes known, in a contained manner, his hostility”more “the professional behavior of the (French) crew made it possible to avoid any escalation” while continuing its mission, declared Colonel Vernet. The Russian army also had little interest in carrying out its threat because “an attack on a NATO plane could cause a sudden and serious escalation with NATO”he still judged.

Ce type d’incident, “quite serious”East “fairly widespread” et “goes well beyond the borders of Europe”estimated American General Christopher Cavoli, commander of NATO forces in Europe, during a press point Thursday in Brussels.