F-18's Close Encounter with Russian Jet over 'NATO Lake' Caught on Video

A video circulating on social media appears to show a close encounter between what may be a Spanish air force F-18 jet and a Russian Sukhoi Su-30 aircraft over the Baltic Sea.

The accession of Finland and Sweden to NATO in response to Russian President Vladimir Putin's full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022 means that the Baltic Sea is surrounded by members of the military alliance, prompting some observers to label it a "NATO lake."

Tensions between NATO member states, including Spain, and Russia are at a high amid the war in Ukraine. U.S. President Joe Biden warned in December that his Russian counterpart, Putin, would strike at NATO.

Footage of the F-18 and Su-30 was shared on X, formerly Twitter, by Babak Taghvaee, an aviation journalist and historian. It shows a "close encounter" between the two aircraft over the Baltic.

"Video recorded by navigator of a Su-30SM multirole fighter of the #Russian Navy Aviation over Baltic Sea shows their close encounter with what appears to be EF-18A Hornet fighter jets of the Spanish Air Force involved in Baltic Air Policing missions recently (flown from Šiauliai, Lithuania)," Taghvaee wrote late on Monday.

There are some doubts about which NATO ally the F-18 belongs to, however, with speculation that it could be a Finnish aircraft. Newsweek couldn't independently verify the authenticity of the video and has contacted NATO and Russia's Defense Ministry for comment by email.

NATO announced in April that Spain and Portugal had deployed fighter detachments as part of a mission aimed at "securing the skies" above the Baltic Sea that would run until the end of July.

"Spanish and Portuguese Air Force fighter detachments are now at the helm for NATO's Baltic Air Policing operating out of Šiauliai, Lithuania; within days, Spain conducted their first alert scramble. Both detachments will execute the mission until the end of July," the military alliance said on April 11.

Spanish Detachment Commander, Lieutenant Colonel Pablo Estrada said the mission was the country's fourth leading NATO's Air Policing mission in the Baltics.

"This fact and our robust commitment to NATO Air Policing at home, our support to enhanced Air Policing in Bulgaria and Romania and the ongoing support with Surface-Based Missile Defence Systems – PATRIOT in Turkey and NASAMS in Latvia – showcase Spain's strong commitment to NATO's missions and collective security – in the south and in the north," Estrada said.

Lieutenant Colonel Jose Dias, Portugal's Detachment Commander, said the mission marked the seventh time its F-16 jets had been deployed "to safeguard the Baltic skies."

"As one of the founding Allies of NATO it is an honour for Portugal to continue our support to this important mission in the 75th year since NATO was established – which happens to be the 20th year of the Baltic Air Policing mission," Dias said.

"Our aircrew and support personnel will once again demonstrate their professionalism and expertise during mission execution," he added.

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