US, Romanian Observers to Fly Over Russia Under Open Skies Treaty

Military experts from the United States and Romania will fly over the territories of Russia and Belarus on a Romanian surveillance aircraft in the framework of the Treaty on Open Skies this week, head of Russia's National Nuclear Risk Reduction Center Sergei Ryzhkov said.

MOSCOW (Sputnik) — The Open Skies Treaty allows its participants to openly gather information on each other's military forces and activities.

"On May 4-7, in the framework of the international Treaty on Open Skies, a joint mission of Romania and the United States will perform an observation flight over the territory of <…> Belarus and Russia on a Romanian An-30 surveillance aircraft," Ryzhkov said in a statement on Tuesday.

In the course of the observation mission, Russian specialists on board the aircraft will monitor compliance with the agreed parameters of the flight and the use of observation equipment, according to the statement.

The Open Skies Treaty was signed in March 1992 and became one of the major confidence-building measures in Europe after the Cold War. It entered into force on January 1, 2002, and currently has 34 States Parties, including Russia and the majority of the NATO countries.

Moscow ratified the Treaty on Open Skies on May 26, 2001.