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| Russians resume Cold War air runs | |
| (about 1 hour later) | |
| Russian bombers have flown to the US island of Guam in the Pacific in a surprise manoeuvre reminiscent of the Cold War era. | |
| Two Tu-95 turboprops flew this week to Guam, home to a big US military base, Russian Maj Gen Pavel Androsov said. | |
| They "exchanged smiles" with US pilots who scrambled to track them, he added. | They "exchanged smiles" with US pilots who scrambled to track them, he added. |
| The sorties, believed to be the first since the Cold War ended, come as Russia stresses a more assertive foreign policy, correspondents say. | |
| The flight is part of a pattern of more expansive Russian military operations in recent weeks, says BBC diplomatic correspondent Jonathan Marcus. | |
| Old practice | |
| Gen Androsov said the strategic bombers had flown 13 hours from their base in the Russian Far East during the exercise. | |
| "It has always been the tradition of our long-range aviation to fly far into the ocean, to meet [US] aircraft carriers and greet [US pilots] visually," he said at a news conference. | |
| "Yesterday [Wednesday] we revived this tradition, and two of our young crews paid a visit to the area of the base of Guam," he said. | |
| "I think the result was good. We met our colleagues - fighter jet pilots from [US] aircraft carriers. We exchanged smiles and returned home," he added. | |
| During the Cold War, Soviet bombers regularly flew long-haul missions to areas patrolled by Nato and the US. | |
| The bombers have the capability of launching a nuclear strike with the missiles they carry. |