Russia's defence ministry said on Tuesday that two of its Tu-95MS strategic bombers had conducted a flight of more than 12 hours over the Pacific Ocean, the Bering Sea and the Sea of Okhotsk.
The flight by the nuclear-capable planes came at a moment of high tension in Russia's war with Ukraine and its confrontation with the West, after NATO and the United States said they expected Russia to test its nuclear forces imminently.
The aircraft were escorted by MiG-31 fighter planes, and refuelled while in the air, the ministry said. It described the mission as "a scheduled flight over neutral waters", in line with international airspace rules.
