MOSCOW, Nov. 25 (Xinhua) -- Two Russian strategic bombers finished their long-range regular patrol flight on Wednesday, said a Russian military official. 
Assistant to Air Force Commander-in-chief Vladimir Drik told reporters that two Tupolev Tu-95MS strategic bombers took off from the Engels air base in the Saratov region on Tuesday, and successfully observed the flight route above the neutral waters of the Arctic Ocean to the Atlantic. 
During the 16-hour mission the bombers had once been followed by NATO F-15 and Tornado fighters, he said. 
All Russian strategic patrol flights "strictly comply with the international rules of using air space over neutral waters without violating the borders of foreign countries," he was quoted by the Interfax news agency as saying. 
Earlier this month, another two strategic bombers already finished regular patrol flight above the waters of the Arctic ocean to the Pacific. 
Russia resumed long-range regular patrol flight of its strategic bombers in August 2007 after a 15-year cessation, covering the air space above the Atlantic, the Arctic Ocean, the Pacific, the Black Sea and the North Pole. 
Analysts said the resumption of patrol flight indicated a significant change in Russia's strategic military forces. 
It was considered a counter-measure to threats facing Russia, as well as a response to NATO's continued eastward expansion that is approaching Russia's western border.