A Russian military aircraft flew within 150 meters of a group of warships from countries of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) operating in the Baltic Sea last week, according to a weekend report by U.S. news agency CNN citing defense sources.
The other warships in the group were from Britain, France and Germany and the low-flying plane was caught on video although the footage has not yet been released, CNN reported Saturday.
The incident is the most recent such encounter amid rising military tensions between Russia and the West against the background of the ongoing conflict in Ukraine. Earlier this month, a Russian jet buzzed a U.S. warship in the Black Sea. The U.S. has also warned of unsafe Russian intercepts of its planes.
"We are not calling this safe and professional. We are calling it routine, but we are on the edge of being very uncomfortable," CNN quoted a U.S. Defense Department official as saying about the Baltic Sea incident. The official added that the overflight, which occurred on Thursday, was lower than those previously seen.
Russia's military has reportedly become more aggressive in recent months with large-scale military exercises conducted on land and sea, while Russian aircraft have repeatedly probed the air defenses of European countries.
NATO countries have also increased their military presence in Europe in a bid to reassure countries wary of Kremlin after the March 2014 annexation of Crimea.
The Pentagon has proposed sending tanks, fighting vehicles and other heavy weapons for up to 5,000 troops to NATO member states on Russia's borders, The New York Times newspaper reported Saturday.
