The flights of the Russian aircraft over neutral waters near the state boundaries of the Russian Federation provoked a nervous reaction in the Ministry of Defence of Canada, whose ship "Toronto" is taking part in the military exercises involving NATO and Ukraine in the north-west of the Black Sea. “This is a provocation”, said an outraged Minister Rob Nicholson, “ it can lead to an escalation of tensions”. Although he acknowledged that the Russian planes did not threaten the Canadian vessel, he called on Russia to stop such, as he put it, "irresponsible" actions.
Interestingly, does the Minister of Defence of Canada consider patrolling by the Russian aircraft of their borders, when 12 warships from an unfriendly military organization are maneuvering in close proximity to them, an irresponsible action? Or are the members of the NATO alliance so naive as to expect that Russia will monitor the situation during exercises in the Black Sea secretly through binoculars from the shore? And where can the Russian spy planes flying over the Canadian ship cause escalation of tensions? Not on the Canadian vessel itself?
Such a precedent has already been set earlier. In April this year the American destroyer "Donald Cook" arrived in the same Black Sea (NATO ships, located thousands of miles away from this region, have started frequenting the Black Sea). One day a Russian Su-24 appeared in the vicinity. The very next day, Pentagon spokesman Steve Warren embarked on an angry admonition of the Russian command. He spoke about the provocative actions that do not conform to the professional interaction between the armed forces of the Russian Federation and the United States. Since these actions, as it turned out, demoralized the crew. 27 American officers immediately submitted their resignation from service. And this despite the fact that there was no imminent threat to their lives, says the director of the Center for Public Policy Problems Vladimir Evseev:
“Americans were scared because Russian aviation had been engaged in electronic warfare. Because it turned out that Russian planes may suddenly appear over the American ship and strike if necessary. Such a demonstration of the possibility of destruction of American ships in the Black Sea sent some American officers into a state of shock. Because they were convinced of the omnipotence of their technology, and it turned out that Russia has a significant advantage in electronic warfare.”
Simply speaking, the Russian aircraft equipped with the latest system of electronic warfare (EW), deactivated the electronic devices on "Donald Cook". Sailors could see it in the sky from the deck, but the radar screens were blank. And the much-publicised system "Aegis", with which the American destroyer was equipped, proved to be powerless. Apparently, the Canadian "Toronto" met a similar fate, says Alexander Khramchikhin, deputy director of the Institute of Political and Military Analysis:
“Su-24 jammed the American system "Aegis" with its EW system. This was most upsetting for the Americans. Jamming "Toronto", in general, is a simple matter. This frigate is nowhere near the American destroyer in comparison, it is much weaker, it could be jammed quite easily. And I do not exclude that the Russian plane used the same tactics of electronic warfare.”
The Russian Defence Ministry reported that the airplanes were flying in strict compliance with international regulations on the use of airspace over neutral waters in the vicinity of the state border of the Russian Federation. They refused to comment on the possible use of EW systems during the flight of the aircraft.
Read more: http://indian.ruvr.ru/2014_09_11/Black-sea-tension/