Russian flights near Alaska surge after Trump–Putin meeting

Russian reconnaissance aircraft have sharply increased flights into Alaska’s air defense identification zone (ADIZ) following the Aug. 15 meeting between U.S. President Donald Trump and Vladimir Putin at a military base in Anchorage, Stars and Stripes reported, citing the Pentagon.

On Aug. 26, NORAD scrambled two F-16s, an E-3 Sentry and a KC-135 tanker to intercept an Il-20 near Shemya Island — the fifth such encounter in a week. The plane remained in the ADIZ for more than two hours, coming as close as 48 km from U.S. territory, but did not breach sovereign airspace.

Between February and July 2025, only five such incidents were recorded, compared with five in just seven days after the Trump–Putin summit.

NORAD said such flights are routine and not considered threatening, but the surge began shortly after talks where the leaders discussed Ukraine, nuclear arms control and Arctic cooperation.