U.S. Fighter Jets Track Russian Warplanes Near Alaska as NATO Tensions Rise: What to Know

North American Aerospace Defense Command (NORAD) fighter jets were sent to identify and intercept four Russian military planes detected off Alaska on Wednesday, the agency said Thursday. The Russian aircraft remained in international airspace without entering U.S. or Canadian territory. The incident, which comes as tensions rise over recent Russian incursions into NATO countries’ airspace, marks the third time in roughly a month and the ninth time this year that NORAD has reported Russian aircraft flying near Alaska.  NORAD said that Russian military activity in the stretch of international airspace known as the Alaskan Air Defense Zone (ADIZ), where the planes were detected on Wednesday, is not a threat and occurs regularly. What is the Alaskan Air Defense Zone? The Alaskan ADIZ is a international airspace that neighbors U.S. and Canadian sovereign airspace. It is monitored by the Alaska region of NORAD, a U.S. and Canadian defense organization that conducts aerospace warnings and control for North America. An ADIZ requires the identification of all aircraft for the sake of national security, NORAD said. NORAD responded on Wednesday to the detection of the Russian military planes, two Tu-95s and two Su-35s, by sending an E-3 aircraft, four F-16 aircrafts, and four KC-135 tankers to identify and intercept the aircraft. Mounting tensions over Russian aircraft violating NATO airspace NATO allies have been debating how to deal with multiple Russian incursions into member countries’ airspace this month.  On Tuesday, President Donald Trump called for NATO countries to shoot down Russian planes that violate their airspace. NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte backed Trump’s comments on Thursday, saying countries in the military alliance should shoot down Russian planes entering their airspace if other options have been exhausted and it is deemed necessary. The remarks came after three Russian jets entered Estonia’s airspace for a total of 12 minutes last week without permission, according to the Estonian government. Russia denied violating Estonian airspace. NATO “responded immediately” and intercepted the Russian planes, the alliance’s spokesperson, Allison Hart, wrote on X. Hours after Russian jets were reported to have entered Estonia’s airspace, Polish and allied military aircrafts were scrambled after Russia launched an aerial attack on Ukraine that targeted regions close to the country’s western border with Poland, among others. Poland reported earlier in September that it had shot down Russian drones after 19 violated its airspace. Russia denied the incursion, saying it had carried out a “large-scale strike” in Ukraine but “there were no targets envisioned for destruction on the Polish territory.” Both Poland and Estonia invoked Article 4 of NATO’s treaty following the reported violations of their airspace, prompting formal consultations among alliance members.