Estonia accuses Russia of airspace violation amid heightened tensions

Baltic NATO member state Estonia accused neighbouring Russia of violating its airspace on Tuesday, apparently the sixth such incident to occur this year amid heightened tensions between Russia and the West.

A Russian border service jet, an An-148, entered Estonian airspace without permission on Tuesday near the island of Vaindloo in the Gulf of Finland



and remained in the airspace for about a minute, Estonia's military said.

The plane's electronic identification system was functioning, but its crew did not maintain contact with air traffic control, the Estonian military said.

Estonia summoned the Russian ambassador over the incident and gave him a formal statement of protest.