Latest news with #airspaceViolation
Free Malaysia Today
15 hours ago
- Politics
- Free Malaysia Today
Finland summons Russian diplomat after suspected airspace violation
Finland's defence minister Antti Hakkanen said an investigation into yesterday's incident has been launched. (AFP pic) HELSINKI: Finland on Wednesday summoned Russia's charge d'affaires for talks, a day after a Russian military aircraft was suspected of violating Finnish airspace, the foreign ministry told AFP. Finland's defence ministry said on Tuesday that it believed a Russian military aircraft had violated Finnish airspace off the coast of Porvoo, east of the capital Helsinki. The foreign ministry said it would provide more details after the talks. The incident came only weeks after a similar incident, which was also followed by a summoning of Russia's diplomatic representative. Finland, which joined Nato in 2023 after Moscow's fully-fledged invasion of Ukraine a year earlier, shares a 1,340km border with Russia. 'An investigation into the alleged violation of airspace was launched immediately,' defence minister Antti Hakkanen said of Tuesday's incident, adding that the coast guard would head the inquiry. Moscow has repeatedly warned Finland of possible repercussions over its decision to join Nato, amid heightened tensions. Hakkanen told AFP in mid-May that Finland was 'closely monitoring and assessing Russia's activities and intentions'. He was commenting after the New York Times published satellite images appearing to show an expansion of Russian military infrastructure near the border.
Arab News
18 hours ago
- Politics
- Arab News
Finland summons Russian diplomat after suspected airspace violation
HELSINKI: Finland on Wednesday summoned Russia's charge d'affaires for talks, a day after a Russian military aircraft was suspected of violating Finnish airspace, the foreign ministry said. Finland's defense ministry said on Tuesday that it believed a Russian military aircraft had violated Finnish airspace off the coast of Porvoo, east of the capital Helsinki. The foreign ministry said it would provide more details after the talks. The incident came only weeks after a similar incident, which was also followed by a summoning of Russia's diplomatic representative. Finland, which joined NATO in 2023 after Moscow's fully-fledged invasion of Ukraine a year earlier, shares a 1,340-kilometer (830-mile) border with Russia. 'An investigation into the alleged violation of airspace was launched immediately,' Defense Minister Antti Hakkanen said of Tuesday's incident, adding that the coast guard would head the inquiry. Moscow has repeatedly warned Finland of possible repercussions over its decision to join NATO, amid heightened tensions. Hakkanen said in mid-May that Finland was 'closely monitoring and assessing Russia's activities and intentions.' He was commenting after the New York Times published satellite images appearing to show an expansion of Russian military infrastructure near the border.
Arab News
26-05-2025
- Politics
- Arab News
Finland summons Russian ambassador over suspected airspace violation: ministry
HELSINKI: Finland's foreign ministry said on Monday it had summoned the Russian ambassador over suspicions that two Russian military aircraft violated its airspace last week. Finland, which dropped decades of military non-alignment to join NATO in 2023, following Russia's fully-fledged invasion of Ukraine, has a 1,340-kilometer (830-mile) border with Russia. The defense ministry reported on Friday there had been a suspected airspace violation off the coast of Porvoo, around 50 kilometers (30 miles) from the capital, Helsinki. It said an investigation into the incident was ongoing. 'The foreign ministry of Finland has today summoned the ambassador of Russia and requested an explanation regarding the suspected violation of airspace,' the ministry said in a post on X. Moscow has repeatedly warned Finland of repercussions since it joined NATO. Last week, Defense Minister Antti Hakkanen told AFP that Finland was 'closely monitoring and assessing Russia's activities and intentions.' He was commenting after the New York Times published satellite images appearing to show an expansion of Russian military infrastructure near the border. Hakkanen said in an email that Russia's moves 'to strengthen its armed forces have not come as a surprise to Finland.' Helsinki has increased its military investments and preparedness since joining NATO. In April, it announced it would boost defense spending to at least three percent of GDP by 2029 and reform its defense forces to tackle security threats.
