Russian Military Jet Intercepted U.S. Plane Near Japan

A Russian Su-27 Flanker fighter jet intercepted a U.S. surveillance plane off Russia’s east coast near Japan in April, flying unusually close, as tensions rose over the Ukraine crisis.

The U.S. RC-135U Combat Sent electronic intelligence plane made by Boeing Co. (BA) was conducting a routine mission over the Sea of Okhotsk north of Japan on April 23 when the Russian fighter flew within about 100 feet (30 meters) of its nose, Rear Admiral John Kirby, a Pentagon spokesman, said yesterday.

The incident coincided with President Barack Obama’s arrival on a visit to Japan, during which he criticized Russia over its annexation of Crimea. Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe’s government has joined other Group of Seven nations in applying sanctions against Russia, disrupting Abe’s effort to strengthen ties between the two countries and resolve a decades-old territorial dispute.

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