Russia’s February 2016 request in to fly reconnaissance aircraft loaded with high tech digital sensors over the entire United States would seem reasonable under the Open Skies Treaty, signed in Helsinki in 1992 by the U.S. and 23 other countries, and finally ratified by Russia and Belarus in 2002 when the treaty entered into force. It now has 34 states as parties. The treaty permits unarmed flights over signatory nations aimed at fostering transparency about military activity. The treaty was meant to prevent miscalculation about military threats and to help monitor arms control agreements. The treaty has seen Russian and American reconnaissance planes flying over each other’s territory for years. This sudden request for more Russian overflights raises questions since Mr. Putin’s clandestine intelligence services and high tech spy satellites, along with Russia’s earlier Open Skies Treaty flights over the U.S., have already provided the information he needs...(Read Full Post)