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The EU plans to spend billions of euros on creating a “drone wall” along its eastern border using combat-tested Ukrainian technologies, the Financial Times reports.
Recent Russian airspace violations in Poland and Romania exposed NATO’s reliance on costly interception systems against cheap drones — a vulnerability Moscow could exploit.
To close the gap, Brussels urged EU capitals to use EU funds for joint purchases of systems that have proven effective in Ukraine.
European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said Europe must “build a drone wall” on its eastern flank. She announced an EU-Ukraine “drone alliance” backed by €6 billion, to “turn Ukrainian ingenuity into battlefield advantage and joint industrialization.”
Poland, the Baltic states and Finland plan to fortify their borders, but officials warn success requires unified, fully integrated technologies.
Meanwhile, NATO launched Operation Eastern Sentinel, deploying fighter jets, ships and surveillance systems from Finland to Bulgaria to bolster air defense until new systems are in place.
Ukraine has been innovating low-cost air-defense methods since the start of Russia’s full-scale invasion, becoming a pioneer in affordable counter-drone tactics, FT notes.
