Russia not probing into Canadian airspace, federal officials say

F16 fighter jets of the Romanian Air Force and the Romania based European F-16 Training Center (EFTC), which also trains Ukrainian pilots, perform a flyby at the Black Sea, Defense, Aerospace and Security (BSDA) international exhibition in Bucharest, Romania on Wednesday, May 22, 2024. (AP Photo/Vadim Ghirda)

OTTAWA — Following several recent high-profile Russian incursions into NATO airspace, senior defence and foreign affairs officials told members of Parliament Thursday that Canada has not seen similar Russian moves into Canadian airspace over the past year.

Eric Laporte, head of the regional security and defence relations division at Global Affairs Canada, told MPs on the House of Commons foreign affairs committee that Russia’s efforts to probe the defences of NATO allies increased “markedly” this year.

“Russian drone incursions is not a new phenomenon. They’ve been doing it since 2022, essentially, but the pace and scope has increased recently,” he said.

Laporte called the incursions a “cat and mouse game” that is both “egregious” and “reckless” and risks escalation. He added that the alliance stands ready to respond.

The committee is studying the recent Russian air incursions over eastern Europe.

Russia has in recent weeks sent drones into Polish and Romanian airspace and flown fighter jets through Estonian airspace.

Conservative foreign affairs critic Michael Chong said the stepped-up Russian activity is “head spinning.”

Ty Curran, deputy director general of international security policy at the Department of National Defence, told the committee Canada has “not seen any incursions” or “penetration of our air defence” space in the past year.

The North American Aerospace Defense Command said it intercepted Russian military aircraft off the coast of Alaska on Wednesday.

Norad also noted the Russian planes did not enter American or Canadian airspace and that this is a regular occurrence that is not seen as a threat.

Drones have also been spotted over Denmark and Norway recently, although those nations have not specifically attributed the incursions to Russia.

In response to Russia’s actions, NATO has invoked Article 4 consultations and launched Operation Eastern Sentry to bolster its posture and air defences on Europe’s eastern flank.

Canada has not provided additional forces to Eastern Sentry at this point. Officials pointed to Canada’s contributions to Russian deterrence through the troop deployment in Latvia.

Poland shot down Russian drones in its airspace but allied militaries did not shoot down the MiG 31 jets that flew over Estonia.

Former defence minister Bill Blair pointed out that U.S. President Donald Trump has made a “very significant change” in his posture toward the restoration of Ukraine’s original territorial integrity this week.

Trump also called on NATO countries to stop buying oil from Russia and declared he is considering tariffs against countries still purchasing Russian energy.

Canadian officials said there could be a broader response from NATO in the future if Russia escalates, and Ottawa is constantly reviewing possible new sanctions on Russia.

Laporte said Canada is looking into options related to the oil and gas revenues that are topping up Russia’s war chest.

“We recognize that oil and gas continues to be an important source of revenue for the Russian economy and that is why we are looking at other options under our G7 presidency to reduce Russia’s oil revenues,” Laporte said.

“In the long term, we know the sanctions are causing persistent diversions of resources for Russia, so it is damaging its growth potential.”

Kyle Duggan, The Canadian Press