Top General: Russia Is Testing U.S. Military for Weaknesses Amid Pandemic

Russia is testing whether the U.S. military has developed any weaknesses during the novel coronavirus crisis, a top general said, noting three run-ins with that country’s planes over a two-month period.

“We just want to make it very clear to them … there are no vulnerabilities as a result of COVID-19,” Air Force Gen. Terrence J. O’Shaughnessy, head of U.S. Northern Command, told reporters Tuesday. “We are postured and maintain that ability to respond at a moment’s notice.” . . .

Air Force F-22 Raptor fighter jets intercepted two Russian maritime patrol planes earlier this month approximately 50 miles from Alaska’s Aleutian Islands. About a month earlier, a pair of Russian reconnaissance aircraft were intercepted by U.S. and Canadian jets 50 miles from the state’s coast over the Beaufort Sea.

That was the second time in days Russian aircraft were spotted in the region. A Russian plane also flew within 25 feet of a Navy P-8A Poseidon reconnaissance aircraft last week. The aircraft was flying inverted at high speed, putting the Navy crew at risk, officials said.

O’Shaughnessy said Russia is likely to continue testing the U.S. — including near the homeland. (Read more from “Top General: Russia Is Testing U.S. Military for Weaknesses Amid Pandemic” HERE)

Follow Joe Miller on Twitter HERE and Facebook HERE