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French warplanes were scrambled 11 times over the past week as part of NATO’s Baltic Air Policing Mission, France’s armed forces spokesperson confirmed on Thursday. The official described the incidents as a higher-than-usual number of “provocations.”

The mission involves rotating deployments of NATO fighter jets to safeguard the airspace of Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania, addressing gaps in their own defence capabilities. Aircraft are dispatched to intercept unidentified or non-compliant planes entering the protected zone.

Guillaume Vernet, the spokesperson, told a weekly news briefing that this unusually high frequency of interceptions might indicate Moscow’s intent to “flex its muscles,” particularly as it hosted its annual St Petersburg International Economic Forum during the same period.

“The ⁠French detachment deployed on the Baltic Air Policing mission carried out multiple interceptions of Russian military aircraft flying without flight plans or radio contact,” Vernet said, adding that the intercepted aircraft included armed fighter jets, ‌intelligence and transport planes.

The incidents ​follow a series of cases ‌in which military drones ⁠strayed into the airspace of Finland, ⁠Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania, stoking fears that the ‌war in ​Ukraine could spill over ‌into NATO’s northern borders ​with Russia.

File: A Swedish Air Force Saab JAS 39 Gripen fighter jet flies during a media day, illustrating how NATO Air Policing safeguards the Allies’ airspace in the northern and northeastern region of the Alliance, July 4, 2023. REUTERS/Piroschka van de Wouw/File Photo (REUTERS)

Meanwhile on Thursday, Russia ​accused NATO of squeezing Serbia “like a boa constrictor”, citing a joint military ⁠exercise taking place there as evidence of an attempt to subjugate the country.

Serbia says the ⁠annual “Platinum Wolf” ​exercise, ⁠which began on June 1 with the support ⁠of the U.S. European ​command, ⁠is aimed at exchanging ‌best practices and to “enhance the competence and mutual understanding” of ‌countries taking part, which ‌include eight NATO members.

Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova ⁠said NATO wanted to take over the Balkans and tear Serbia away from Russia.

“They are wrapping Serbia in the coils of their love like ‌a boa constrictor,” Zakharova told ​reporters.

Russia has traditionally ‌strong relations with ⁠Serbia, which was subjected to ⁠a NATO bombing campaign during ‌the ​1999 Kosovo war.