MOSCOW: Russia denied on Monday that its aircraft were violating NATO airspace and warned that countries making such accusations risked “escalating tensions.”
Three Russian fighter jets entered NATO member Estonia’s airspace on Friday, remaining there for 12 minutes before being escorted out by NATO aircraft, Tallinn said.
The MiG-31 jets, which were overflying the Gulf of Finland, had their transponders switched off and did not engage with Estonian air traffic control, the Baltic country added.
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov on Monday denied Estonia’s version of events, saying the Russian military operates “strictly within the confines of international law, including those pertaining to flights.”
Russia considers Estonia’s statements “empty, unfounded, and a continuation of the country’s utterly unstoppable policy of escalating tensions and provoking a confrontational atmosphere,” Peskov told reporters.
NATO ambassadors will convene on Tuesday for talks on the incursion, after Estonia called for urgent discussions under Article Four of the alliance’s founding treaty.
Poland invoked Article Four earlier this month after around 20 Russian drones violated its airspace.
Russia says NATO airspace accusations create ‘tension’
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Russia says NATO airspace accusations create ‘tension’
- Three Russian fighter jets reportedly entered NATO member Estonia’s airspace on Friday
- Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov on Monday denied Estonia’s version of events
US pays about $160m of the nearly $4 billion it owes the United Nations
- The UN has said the United States owes $2.196 billion to its regular budget
- Trump has said the United Nations has not lived up to its potential
UNITED NATIONS: The United States has paid about $160 million of the nearly $4 billion it owes the United Nations, the UN said Thursday.
The Trump administration’s payment is earmarked for the UN’s regular operating budget, UN spokesman Stéphane Dujarric told The Associated Press.
The UN has said the United States owes $2.196 billion to its regular budget, including $767 million for this year, and $1.8 billion for a separate budget for the far-flung UN peacekeeping operations.
UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres warned last month that the world body faces “imminent financial collapse” unless its financial rules are overhauled or all 193 member nations pay their dues, a message clearly directed at the United States.
The disclosure of the payment came as President Donald Trump convened the first meeting of the Board of Peace, a new initiative many see as his attempt to rival the UN Security Council’s role in preventing and ending conflict around the world.
Trump has said the United Nations has not lived up to its potential. His administration did not pay anything to the United Nations in 2025, and it has withdrawn from UN organizations, including the World Health Organization and the cultural agency UNESCO, while pulling funding from dozens of others.
UN officials have said 95 percent of the arrears to the UN’s regular budget is from the United States.
