The militaries of Russia and the United States have discussed a close call between two US F-22 Raptor and two Russian Su-25 aircraft over Syria on Wednesday, a CENTCOM official told Sputnik.
"Two F-22 went too close to two Russian jets so we had to use the de-confliction channels," the official stated on Thursday. "This is not something extraordinary… It happens sometimes several times a day."
A US official stated earlier on Thursday that F-22 fighter aircraft fired warning flares to chase Russian Su-25 jets away from the airspace over the so-called de-confliction zone that was agreed upon by Washington and Moscow.
The unnamed official went on to say that Russian aircraft left the safe zone after flares were launched.
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So far, neither Russian, nor US military officials commented on the issue.
The agreement on the so-called de-escalation zones was signed by Russia, Turkey and Iran in May. The deal covers Idlib province, Eastern Ghouta near Damascus, the Jordan border area including parts of Deraa and Quneitra provinces. It stipulates the cessation of hostilities in these areas.
