The French army announced Tuesday that a Russian plane had been attacked. intercepted off the Estonian coast. "Take-off on alert and interception of an Il-20 reconnaissance and intelligence aircraft "Coot" Russian aircraft off the Estonian coast by the French Mirage 2000-5. Objective: to protect the airspace of our Baltic allies, indicated Tuesday February 27 on X (ex-Twitter) the French army. Few more details have been released. publicly revealed by the General Staff. This event occurs after two years, and the start of the war in Ukraine, the relationship between Western countries and Russia has cooled significantly. Monday evening, Emmanuel Macron also affirmed that no longer "exclude the sending of ground troops" in Ukraine, which also prompted strong reactions among Paris's allies. 
#eAP | Décollage sur alerte et interception d’un avion de reconnaissance et de renseignement Il-20 « Coot » 🇷🇺 au large des côtes 🇪🇪 par les Mirage 2000-5 🇫🇷.
Objectif : protéger l’espace aérien de nos alliés baltes. 🛡️ pic.twitter.com/QjdzyrARwG
— Armée française – Opérations militaires (@EtatMajorFR) February 27, 2024
What was a French plane doing so far from France ?
While the intervention took place at Nearly 1,900 kilometers from Paris, the presence of a French plane off the Estonian coast can be surprising. But that’s not the case. A good number of French military aircraft are in fact mobilized in different NATO member countries. An orchestrated deployment as part of “NATO Sky Police" missions. Missions during which the Allies with combat aircraft help those who do not have them to fight. ensure the integrity of of their air space", specifies é this subject on the NATO website.