After ‘five metres’ of a Russian fighter jet, a military plane with the EU border agency nearly crashed.
According to Poland’s border force, an L-410 Turbolet used for surveillance was out on a patrol for Frontex on Friday over the Black Sea.
Unable to communicate with the Polish plane via radio, a Russian Sukhoi Su-35 fighter jet allegedly flew three times dangerously near to the aircraft.
The dangerous manoeuvres by the Russian jet allegedly caused the Polish pilots to lose control, forcing them to make an emergency landing in Romania.
Government spokesperson Piotr Muller told local media: ‘It looks like a planned provocation by Russia, the crew acted responsibly and luckily nothing happened.’
He added: ‘We can see that Russia is trying to draw international attention by such provocations.’
Romanian and Spanish planes have reportedly been put on ‘pre-alert’ by NATO following the incident.
The perceived provocation came two days before Putin launched a fresh wave of missile attacks against various locations in Ukraine, ahead of tomorrow’s celebration of Victory Day in Moscow, the annual commemoration of Russia’s triumph over Nazi Germany.
These included strikes on multiple locations in the capital of Kyiv, as well as in the southern port city of Odessa, the southern region of Kherson, the Zaporizhia region to the southeast and the Sumy region in the northeast.
Attacks against Russian targets in Ukraine have also intensified of late, particularly in the Russian-occupied territory in Crimea.
Though Ukraine has not formally claimed responsibility for these strikes, officials say they’re nevertheless seeking to destroy key enemy infrastructure ahead of launching an imminent large-scale counteroffensive against Russian forces.
Ukraine hopes this counteroffensive, aimed at liberating remaining territories controlled by Russia, will decisively turn the tide of a war that has lasted 15 months, seen thousands killed and millions displaced.
During a visit to the Hague, President Volodymyr Zelensky claimed Russian forces had committed more than 6,000 war crimes on Ukrainian soil in April alone.