Pilots Observed 'All Safety Precautions' When Flying Over US Destroyer, Russia Says

— -- Russia's Defense Ministry says its pilots observed “all safety precautions” when flying over a U.S. Navy destroyer in the Baltic Sea this week.

Russian SU-24 fighter jets overflew the USS Donald Cook at close range more than 30 times on Monday and Tuesday, with one pass just 30 feet above the ship, causing a wake in the waters nearby.

“All flights of Russian Aerospace Forces planes strictly abide by international rules for using airspace over neutral waters," Russian Defense Ministry spokesman Maj. Gen. Igor Konashenkov said today.

The Russian fighters did not respond to multiple radio communications from the American ship to "query them while they were still many miles away," a U.S. defense official said, noting that the commander of the USS Donald Cook called the Russian moves “unsafe and unprofessional."

But the White House disagrees.

During Wednesday’s White House press briefing, press secretary Josh Earnest said the Russian planes were “dangerously close” to the U.S. ship.

“This incident, as you won't be surprised to hear, is entirely inconsistent with the professional norms of militaries operating in proximity to each other in international waters and international airspace,” Earnest said.

Russian officials said the planes were simply conducting routine training flights over neutral waters.

"Frankly speaking, the reason behind such a painful reaction from our American colleagues is unclear. Being present in the operational proximity of the Russian naval base of the Baltic Fleet, the principle of the U.S. destroyer's freedom of navigation by no means cancels the principle of air navigation freedom of Russian airplanes," Konashenkov said.

This is not the first time Russian planes have been accused of flying too close over U.S. Navy ships in the Baltic Sea and the Black Sea. The USS Donald Cook was overflown by Russian fighters more than a dozen times in April 2014 while it was stationed in international waters in the Black Sea.