French Rafale fighter jets deployed to Lithuania under NATO's Baltic Air Policing mission were scrambled four times in one week, intercepting and escorting six Russian military aircraft near the Baltic states' airspace. The intercepted Russian aircraft included an Il-20M electronic intelligence plane and a Su-30SM fighter. The French Rafales used the Thales TALIOS targeting and laser designation pod to enable high-resolution long-range visual identification. The mission supports NATO's continuous air defense coverage over Lithuania, Latvia, and Estonia. No hostile incident or airspace violation was reported during these scrambles, though the activity points to sustained Russian military aviation operations near NATO airspace.

French Rafale fighter jets deployed to Lithuania under NATO's Baltic Air Policing mission were scrambled four times in one week, intercepting and escorting six Russian military aircraft near the Baltic states' airspace. The intercepted Russian aircraft included an Il-20M electronic intelligence plane and a Su-30SM fighter. The French Rafales used the Thales TALIOS targeting and laser designation pod to enable high-resolution long-range visual identification. The mission supports NATO's continuous air defense coverage over Lithuania, Latvia, and Estonia. No hostile incident or airspace violation was reported during these scrambles, though the activity points to sustained Russian military aviation operations near NATO airspace.