Russian MiG-31s violate Estonian airspace near the capital

On Friday, September 19, Russian fighter jets violated Estonian airspace near the country's capital. This was reported by Politico, citing unnamed sources familiar with the matter.

Three Russian fighter jets fly into Estonian airspace, a serious escalation of the conflict on NATO's eastern border.

The interlocutors said that the MiG-31 aircraft, capable of carrying the Kinzhal hypersonic missile, crossed about five nautical miles inside the territory of Estonia and headed for Tallinn.

The Russian planes circled for about 12 minutes before NATO scrambled Italian F-35s to escort them.

The Estonian Ministry of Foreign Affairs confirmed the violation of airspace and summoned the Russian Charge d'Affaires to protest and deliver a note.

The Foreign Ministry added that the incursion took place over the Gulf of Finland, where three fighter jets entered Estonian airspace without permission and stayed there for a total of 12 minutes.

"Russia has already violated Estonian airspace four times this year, which is unacceptable in itself. But today's intrusion, involving three fighter jets that entered our airspace, is unprecedentedly brazen," said Estonian Foreign Minister Margus Tahkna.

Against this background, he called for political and economic pressure on Russia.

• On September 8, the Estonian Ministry of Foreign Affairs handed a note of protest to the Russian Charge d'Affaires after a Russian helicopter violated Estonian airspace.
• On September 13, it was reported that Estonia introduced a temporary ban on flights along the eastern border amid Ukrainian UAV activity in the Leningrad region and Russia's actions.