STOCKHOLM--Sweden Friday lodged a formal protest with the
Russian ambassador here over a violation of Swedish airspace by two
Russian war planes in the latest sign of rising tension between
Moscow and its Western neighbors.
The Swedish foreign ministry said the planes flew in and out of
Swedish airspace south of the island of Oland in the Baltic Sea
Wednesday.
Foreign Minister Carl Bildt told Swedish public-service
television this was the first time in his eight years in the post
that his ministry had deemed it necessary to call in an ambassador
to complain over a violation of Swedish airspace.
"We consider this serious," he said.
A spokesperson for the Russian embassy in Stockholm couldn't be
immediately reached for a comment.
The violation occurred at the same time as Mr. Bildt was meeting
with Sweden's foreign affairs and defense committees to discuss
military developments in the Baltic region and it is the latest in
a series of flair-ups between Russia and its neighbors.
In late August, Russian aircraft violated Finnish airspace three
times in a week and in March last year Russia carried out air
exercises over the Baltic Sea and war planes flew toward the
Swedish border.
Tensions are also high in the Baltic States after an Estonian
intelligence officer was detained by Russian authorities on
suspicion of spying earlier this month.
Estonian officials say the officer, Eston Kohver, was working on
the Estonian side of the border and was snatched by individuals who
came from Russia. Russia, meanwhile, says Mr. Kohver was arrested
while on a spying mission within its borders.
Mr. Kohver remains in Russian detention.
Unlike the Baltic states, neither Sweden nor Finland is a member
of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization but they have been moving
closer to the defense alliance as tensions between Russia and the
West have risen over Russia's actions in Ukraine.
The two Nordic states recently signed an agreement making it
easier for troops from the alliance to operate on Swedish and
Finnish territory.
Write to Charles Duxbury at charles.duxbury@wsj.com and
Christina Zander at christina.zander@wsj.com
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