Russia Thwarts Hijacking Fighter Jets With Hypersonic Missiles For Provocation At NATO Bases

Kinzhal hypersonic missiles on Russian MiG-31 fighter jets. (Wikimedia Commons/Kremlin.ru/The Presidential Press and Information Office)

JAKARTA - The Russian Federal Security Service (FSB) thwarted a Ukrainian military intelligence operation to hijack Russia's MiG-31 fighter jet equipped with the Kinzhal hypersonic missile to carry out a false attack on the North Atlantic Treaty Organization's largest air base (NATO), the FSB press office said.

"The Federal Security Service has uncovered and thwarted operations carried out by the Main Intelligence Directorate of Ukraine's Ministry of Defense and its UK watchdogs to hijack Russia's MiG-31 supersonic fighter jet, equipped with the Kinzhal hypersonic missile, and fly it overseas", the press office said in a statement.

"To hijack the plane, Ukrainian military intelligence officers tried to recruit Russian pilots with an offer of US$3 million. The secret service then planned to send a jet carrying Kinzhal missiles to the largest NATO airbase area in southeastern Europe, in the Romanian city of Constanta, where the plane could be shot down by the air defense system," the FSB said.

"The steps taken have thwarted plans by the intelligence services of Ukraine and Britain to carry out large-scale provocations," the statement said.

Quoting Al Arabiya from Reuters, Kinzhal is a Russian ballistic missile launched from air called hypersonic Moscow, capable of reaching very high speeds and maneuvering on flight lines designed to complicate air defenses to track and intercept them.

Meanwhile, Constanta is the location of the largest NATO military base in Europe, which is currently under construction. The city will accommodate 10,000 NATO soldiers, families and technical personnel.

However, media speculated the number of NATO troops could double, potentially making the base one of Ukraine's largest supply hubs, including ammunition and military equipment.

The base is expected to be fully operational by 2040. Currently, about 5,000 NATO soldiers are stationed there, especially from the United States, Poland, France, and Spain.