US jets intercepted two Russian bombers off the coast of Alaska on Monday night in the first such encounter since Donald Trump took over the White House.
The last time Russian bombers flew near the US was on July 4, 2015, when the planes came as close as 40 miles off the shore of Mendocino, California.
While the planes were flying off the US coast, Vladimir Putin, the Russian president, made a point of calling Barack Obama to wish him a happy Independence Day.