Doha: Sweden said Saturday it had scrambled two pairs of JAS 39 Gripen fighter jets a day earlier to intercept two Russian combat aircraft flying over the Baltic Sea near its airspace. The two incidents occurred on Friday in the southern and northern parts of the Baltic Sea. NATO fighter jets also took off "to maintain security in the shared airspace," Sweden's military said in a statement. Swedish airspace was not violated in connection with the incidents, it said.

According to Qatar News Agency, "The Russian actions are serious and constitute a recurring pattern of behaviour that threatens both our territorial integrity and security," Swedish armed forces' chief of joint operations, Vice Admiral Ewa Skoog Haslum stated. Sweden joined NATO in March 2024, a move that underscores the growing tensions in the region. Tensions over the Baltic Sea have risen sharply since Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022.