SecondOn Friday, the Elger fighter intercepted two Russian bombers in the North Sea. The Dutch Ministry of Defense stated that the two Tupolev Tu-160 machines entered the NATO airspace monitored by the Netherlands, but did not notify them.
The Belgian F-16 then escorted the Russian aircraft to the British-administered area, where the Royal Air Force jets took over surveillance.
The Ministry of Defense of the Netherlands stated: “Russian aircraft intruded into NATO airspace without identification.”
The relationship between Russia and the Netherlands was mainly affected by the 2014 Malaysia Airlines flight MH17 flying from Amsterdam to Kuala Lumpur over eastern Ukraine. Most of the 298 victims were Dutch.
