The European Border and Coast Guard Agency, known as Frontex, temporarily suspended its patrol mission over the Black Sea following the incident with the Russian fighter jet on May 5, Polish Border Guard spokeswoman Anna Michalska said on May 7 to the Polish IAR news agency.
“Flights have been suspended, but the crew remains in Romania,” Michalska reported.
The Polish L410 Turbolet plane was intercepted during its routine patrol mission by a Russian fighter Sukhoi Su-35 around 60 kilometers east of Romanian airspace on May 5.
According to Mikhalska, three times the Russian jet came dangerously close to the Polish plane at a distance of five meters. This caused turbulence and the crew briefly lost control of the aircraft.
Earlier, the Polish government spokesman Piotr Muller said that “it was probably a planned provocation by Russia,” adding that Russia is trying to “draw the international community’s attention to this kind of provocation” with such steps.
Russia's blockade of Ukraine's Black Sea ports began after a full-scale invasion in February 2022, cutting the flow of Ukrainian exports and imports, and dramatically affecting the country's revenues from the sale of agricultural products.
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