In your article, the author made the following reference,
"Walsh added that there were specific and highly significant details related to the F-22 escort and air transport, which might not have otherwise surfaced. Apparently, the F-22s use advanced vectoring capabilities and “stealth” to intimidate and warn the Russian 4th-generation aircraft."
I highly doubt .S. Air Force Chief of Staff Gen. Mark Welsh. Welsh (RET) made reference to the F4 as a "Russian 4th generation aircraft." That section is not in quotes so I am hoping this was just a case of the author not knowing much about fighters or an honest mistake. This is because the F4 is actually the F4 Phantom. The US sold a number of them to Iran before the revolution
The F4 is considered by many to be the apex of Generation 3 fighters. It is not a Generation 4 fighter. It was already flying in the 1970s and 1980s when Generation 4 where being designed and built. Generation 4 focused on manuvering and Generation 3 focused more on speed as an interceptor. This means that generation 3 traded maneuverability for speed.
The F4 Phantom was the US main fighter/interceptor from the Vietnam era. It is a US not Soviet or Russian design. It is arguably the apex of Generation 3 but is in no way a Generation 4 fighter. The initial version lacked even a gun to dogfight, and Generation 4 was focused very much on close-quarters dogfighting.