Russian fighter jets on Wednesday intercepted three U.S. reconnaissance aircraft over the Baltic and Black seas, the Russian Defense Ministry said.

Russian airspace control systems detected an air target approaching the Russian border over the neutral waters of the Baltic Sea, the ministry's Zvezda broadcasting service said in a statement.

The crew of a Russian Su-27 fighter approached the aerial object and identified it at a safe distance as a U.S. Air Force RC-135 strategic reconnaissance plane, Zvezda said.

Also on Wednesday, another Su-27 jet was scrambled to intercept a U.S. Air Force RC-135 plane and a U.S. Navy P-8A Poseidon patrol aircraft reconnaissance aircraft, which were approaching Russia over the neutral waters of the Black Sea.

In the past few weeks, Russian jets repeatedly intercepted U.S. reconnaissance planes approaching the Russian border from various directions.