Russia’s Southern Military District air defense forces detected and escorted a US reconnaissance plane over the Black Sea, the National Defense Control Center reported Tuesday.

"A Su-27 jet fighter scrambled in order to identify the airborne target and prevent it from violating the Russian state border," the report says.

According to the National Defense Control Center, the Su-27 crew identified the airborne target as a US Air Force RC-135 plane and escorted it over the Black Sea without allowing it to violate the Russian border.

"After the foreign military plane turned away from the border of the Russian Federation, the Russian jet fighter safely returned to its home airfield," the statement says.