LONDON: Two Royal Air Force jets shadowed a Russian strategic bomber that approached British airspace, Britain's Ministry of Defense said late on Tuesday.

The incident occurred on Friday, the same day that Russian President Vladimir Putin flexed his military's muscle by placing strategic bombers back on long-range patrol for the first time since the Soviet breakup.

Britain's defense ministry issued two photographs on its website showing one of the two RAF Typhoon F2s flying near the Russian Tu-95 strategic bomber, nicknamed the Bear, over the North Atlantic Ocean.