The United States scrambled fighter jets after Russian military aircraft were detected near Alaska.
The North American Aerospace Defense Command (NORAD) said Wednesday that it detected, tracked, and intercepted two Russian military aircraft operating in the Alaska Air Defense Identification Zone (ADIZ).
In a post on X, formerly known as Twitter, NORAD said U.S. fighter jets had conducted the intercept.
“The Russian aircraft remained in international airspace and did not enter American or Canadian sovereign airspace,” it said. “This Russian activity in the Alaska ADIZ is not seen as a threat, and NORAD will continue to monitor competitor activity near North America and meet presence with presence.”
NORAD, which is made up of U.S. and Canadian forces, has intercepted Russian aircraft flying near Alaska multiple times since President Vladimir Putin‘s full-scale invasion of Ukraine began in February 2022.
For example, it said in July 2023 that Russian aircraft had made at least four incursions into airspace close to Alaska since the beginning of that year.
