Did Putin fear NATO would

SHOOT HIS JET as he flew

to G20?

Putin's plane took a 300 mile diversion to prevent flying

over Poland and the Baltic States on his way to the G20 summit

Data from FlightRadar24 reveals plane carrying Putin
avoided Poland and the Baltic States
It has raised questions about whether the president feared
being shot down
The Kremlin has declined to comment on the reasons
for the lengthy detour
Poland and the Baltic states of Lithuania, Latvia and
Estonia have been particularly vocal in their criticism
of Moscow

A plane carrying Russian President Vladimir Putin made a

300 mile detour to avoid flying over Poland and the Baltic

States on his way to the G20 summit, it has emerged.

It has raised questions about whether Putin feared being shot

down amid heightened tensions with NATO.

According to the FlightRadar24 website, the Russian

government jet flying from Moscow to Hamburg on Thursday

deviated from the direct route over Belarus and Poland.

Poland and the Baltic states of Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia

have been particularly vocal in their criticism of Moscow

since Russia annexed Crimea from Ukraine in 2014.

Vladimir Putin, pictured arriving at the G20 summit, was on

a plane which avoided flying over Poland and the Baltic States,

it has emerged

Putin's plane took a 300 mile diversion to prevent flying over

Poland and the Baltic States on his way to the G20 summit

The Ilyushin with the registration number RA-96022 flew

over the Baltic Sea, crossing on its way territory of neutral

Finland and Sweden before entering the airspace of Denmark

and Germany, both NATO members.

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov declined to comment on

the reasons for the detour, saying only that the president's

security during trips was paramount.

'The (safety) measures which are taken are expedient measures

,' he told a conference call with reporters.

The Kremlin has declined to comment on the reasons for the

300 mile detour, but said 'expedient measures' were being

taken to protect the president

Russian television later showed Putin emerging from a plane with same registration in Hamburg as he arrived for the summit, where he had his first meeting with US President Donald Trump on Friday.

Putin has flown over eastern NATO states on a number of recent occasions. It was not clear why this time his jet took a longer route, which also avoided crossing the Baltic states - former Soviet republics which, like Poland, are members of NATO and the European Union.

A NATO F-16 fighter jet buzzed a plane carrying Russian Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu as it flew over the Baltic Sea on June 21, but was seen off by a Russian Sukhoi-27 military jet, Moscow said in an account partly disputed by NATO.

The Russian president had his first meeting with US President Donald Trump on Friday at the G20 summit

The region is a flashpoint for tensions between Russia and the Western allies, hosting U.S. and NATO troops, to Moscow's displeasure.

US-led war games were held there this year, rehearsing a scenario in which Russia might try to sever the states from the rest of the Western alliance.

In a speech in Warsaw on Thursday, Trump committed to NATO's guarantee that alliance members will defend each other.

Planes carrying Putin over the past 12 months always took direct routes when flying over EU countries, according to data on FlightRadar24. They did not fly over Ukraine, which has closed off its airspace to flights by Russian airlines.

Putin repeatedly flew over Poland during the period, including for his previous European visit in May, and passed over the Lithuanian capital of Vilnius last October.

(The Mail, UK)

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