A group of Canadian observers will begin a series of inspection flights over Russian territory under the Open Skies Treaty on Tuesday, a spokesman for the Russian Defense Ministry said.
“The flights will be along the route coordinated earlier with Russian specialists, who will be on board of the aircraft monitoring implementation of agreements on the use of technical equipment for the observation,” the spokesman said.
The C-130 Hercules aircraft being used was earlier approved and certified by international experts and specialists, including from Russia.
The Open Skies Treaty, signed in 1992 at the initiative of U.S. President George H.W. Bush, established a regime of unarmed aerial observation flights over the territories of its 34 member states to promote openness and the transparency of military forces and activities.
The treaty entered into force on January 1, 2002 and its regime covers the national territories (land, islands, and internal and territorial waters) of all the treaty signatory states. It is an important element of the European security structure.
MOSCOW, May 3 (RIA Novosti)