Russian roulette: Putin jets just feet from US warship

A RUSSIAN jet swoops low over a US warship in a display of military bravado that Western defence chiefs say could have caused an international incident.

The USS Donald Cook was on patrol in the Baltic Sea when two Su-24 fighters carried out a mock attack, roaring alongside and over the destroyer as the shocked crew looked on.

The jets came within 30ft of the Americans and were so low that their engines churned up the sea beneath them.

The destroyer’s crew captured dramatic footage of the stunt – which the commander said was a simulated attack.

Yesterday Moscow denied US claims it had carried out ‘one of the most aggressive acts in recent memory’. Defence spokesman Igor Konashenkov said the planes were on test flights and ‘having observed the ship, turned away in observance of all safety measures’. He added: ‘Frankly speaking, we don’t understand such a sore reaction from our US colleagues.’

Last night Lord West, former head of the Royal Navy, said: ‘To fly straight towards a ship is very provocative. They were lucky there was not an incident. It was extremely dangerous and a stupid thing to do.’

The Pentagon attacked the act as ‘unsafe and unprofessional’ and said they had ‘the potential to unnecessarily escalate tensions’.

Relations between Russia and the West are at their lowest point since the Cold War over Vladimir Putin’s support for separatists in Ukraine.

Tensions in the Baltic have escalated as the Western allies have stepped up their military presence in the region to bolster the tiny Baltic states – which fear they could face the same sort of Russian aggression as Ukraine.