Turkey to 'fly' over Russia

Inspectors from Turkey and Norway will conduct an inspection flight over Russia under the Open Skies Treaty, the Russian Defense Ministry said yesterday. "From Oct. 1-5, 2012 a joint group of Turkish and Norwegian inspectors will conduct a surveillance flight on board a CN-235 surveillance aircraft over the territory of the Russian Federation, under the International Treaty on Open Skies," a ministry spokesman said, according to Russian news agency RIA Novosti. The spokesman added that the flight would take place along the route coordinated earlier with Russian specialists. The Open Skies Treaty, signed in 1992 upon the initiative of then-U.S. President George H.W. Bush, established a regime of unarmed aerial observation flights over the territories of its member states to promote openness and transparency of military forces and activities.