A Russian Su-35 fighter jet was scrambled to intercept two US strategic bombers over the Baltic Sea, Russia’s defence ministry has said.

“Two air targets flying in the direction of the state border of the Russian Federation” were detected by radar on Monday, it said in a statement on the social media platform Telegram.

The aircraft were identified as two US Air Force B-52 strategic bombers “flying in the direction of the Russian Federation’s state border”.

A Su-35 fighter jet took to the air to prevent a border violation, the ministry continued.

“After the foreign military aircraft moved away from the Russian Federation state border, the Russian fighter returned to its base airfield,” it added.

The National Defense Center of the Russian Federation said: “The flight of the Russian fighter was carried out in strict accordance with the international rules for the use of airspace.

“Violations of the state border of the Russian Federation are not allowed.”

The US has not yet responded to the claim.

It comes after the crash of a US military surveillance drone into the Black Sea on 14 March after it was intercepted by Russian jets.

The US Air Force released a video it said showed a Russian jet intercepting the drone and dumping fuel on it over the Black Sea.

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It said two Russian Su-27 jets flew close to the MQ-9 Reaper before one hit its propeller and forced remote operators to crash it into the ocean.

The incident highlighted the increasing risk of direct confrontation between the superpowers as fighting continues in nearby Ukraine.

American officials accused the Russian pilots of flying in a “reckless, environmentally unsound and unprofessional manner”.

Moscow denied the jets behaved dangerously and said they didn’t come into contact with the drone, claiming it crashed due to “sharp manoeuvring”.