Denmark says Russian frigate fired flares at helicopter

Denmark and Russia were at a war of words on Tuesday after Danish authorities accused a Russian frigate of firing flares at a Danish military helicopter.The armed forces said in a statement late on Monday that “one of the air force’s Fennec helicopters was today fired at with flares during a routine photographic operation of a Russian frigate, which was located in international waters off Gedser”, Denmark’s southernmost town.The frigate had fired “two flares towards the helicopter. One of the flares passed at close range to the helicopter”, it added.Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen on Tuesday slammed the incident as “reckless action from Russia”.“Russian actions are meant to intimidate and divide. They will not succeed. We will not waver,” Frederiksen said in a statement on social media.However, Vladimir Barbin, the Russian ambassador to Denmark, fired back, saying it was the helicopter that had been at fault.“The Danish side’s attempts to explain the helicopter’s provocative actions against the Russian frigate as ‘routine practice’ give rise to serious concern about the possible consequences of such recklessness,” Barbin said in a written statement to AFP.