BRITISH and German warplanes have intercepted two Russian jets and a spy plane over the Baltic sea.
The RAF and Luftwaffe sent up Eurofighter jets to shadow two Su-27 fighter aircraft and one Ilyushin Il-20 aircraft, the German air force said.
The intercept is the latest tense encounter in the skies between Russian and NATO warplanes.
Kremlin jets recently brought down an American drone with both sides then putting on a show of strength with nuclear bombers.
Dramatic pictures showed a US B-52 being shadowed over the Baltic by Russian Su-35 aircraft.
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It comes as Russian nuclear bombers have been spotted skirting the coast of Britain in a chilling show of force by Vladimir Putin.
Two Tu-160 planes were seen north of the Shetland Islands and were accompanied by a MiG-31 fighter during the 14 hour mission, which comes amid mounting tensions between Russia and the West.
It is the third time in a week the Russian tyrant has staged patrols of his nuclear strike aircraft and the second time in 12 days they have overflown the Norwegian Sea with Tu-160s.
Video shows the bombers – nicknamed the White Swans – being refuelled in flight during the mission, which comes after a similar display back in February.
“Two Tu-160 strategic missile carriers of the Russian Aerospace Forces have performed a scheduled flight in the airspace above neutral waters of the Barents and Norwegian seas, lasting over 14 hours," said the Russian defence ministry.
"All flights of Russian Aerospace Forces’ planes are carried out in strict compliance with international rules of airspace use.”
The Tu-160 – called the Blackjack by NATO - is a supersonic variable-sweep wing strategic missile-carrying bomber dating from the Soviet era.
Along with Tu-95MS bombers, the planes are the mainstay of Russia’s long-range aviation.
The latest display of Kremlin military might comes as Russia’s former President Dmitry Medvedev warned humanity stands on the brink of World War Three.
It recently emerged that a British spy plane was only saved from being shot down by the Russians when a missile malfunctioned.
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Leaked spy documents show, what would have been an act of war was narrowly averted after one of Vladimir Putin’s pilots locked onto to the RAF RC-135 Rivet Joint, which has a crew of up to 30.
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