MOSCOW, Dec. 22 (Xinhua) -- A Russian fighter jet intercepted a Japanese military aircraft over Far Eastern seas, the Russian Defense Ministry said Tuesday.

The Russian airspace control detected an air object approaching the Russian state border over the neutral waters of the Sea of Japan and the Sea of Okhotsk, the ministry said.

A Su-30 fighter was scrambled and its crew identified the target as an OP-3C patrol plane belonging to the Japanese air force, it said.

The Russian plane then escorted the Japanese aircraft over the Sea of Japan and the Sea of Okhotsk to ensure that it did not violate the Russian state border.