The Russian Defense Ministry said on Tuesday that two of its Tu-95MS strategic bombers, known as "Bear", flew more than 12 hours over the Pacific Ocean and the Bering and Okhotsk seas.
The flight of the two nuclear-capable planes came at a time of heightened tension over Russia's war in Ukraine and its confrontation with the West, after NATO and the United States said they expected Russia to conduct exercises for its nuclear forces.
The ministry said that the two planes were escorted by MiG-31 aircraft, and they were refueled during the flight.
The ministry described the mission as "a pre-scheduled flight over neutral waters", in line with international airspace rules.
Map showing the seas of Okhotsk and Bering (the island)
The ministry did not specify the route, but a flight over the Okhotsk and Bering seas would pass close to Japan and the United States.
And NATO is conducting nuclear readiness exercises this week, and said it expected Russia to conduct its nuclear exercises in the near future.
The Kremlin said earlier on Tuesday that it had no information in this regard.
US officials said they expected the Russian exercises to include a ballistic missile test.
President Vladimir Putin said on September 21 that he was ready to defend Russia's "territorial integrity" by all means, including nuclear weapons if necessary.