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Dutch Defense Minister Ruben Brekelmans believes NATO must clearly communicate to Russia that violating the airspace of Alliance countries is unacceptable.
In an interview with Delfi, he suggested that the periodic incursions into NATO airspace by Russian drones represent a deliberate strategy. “We now know that this is indeed Russia’s strategy—to probe how far they can go, step by step. Therefore, we need to state clearly that this is unacceptable,” Brekelmans said.
He noted that individual member states have their own air defense systems for dealing with simple drones and that they bear responsibility for neutralizing these threats when necessary. However, he emphasized that if situations become more complex and require NATO support, the Alliance must be ready to provide it.
“We need to continuously discuss with allies whether we have sufficient means to protect our airspace. If not, we must ensure we provide more resources,” he stated. “The message to Russia must be clear: violations of NATO airspace are unacceptable.”
Last week, an unidentified aerial object was spotted near the Latvia-Belarus border, which crossed into Latvia’s territory. NATO patrol fighters were deployed from the base in Lielvarde to investigate, but they found no suspicious objects in Latvia’s airspace. Later, it was determined that the unidentified “object” was a flock of birds.
The Latvian Ministry of Defense emphasized that the National Armed Forces, along with NATO allies, continue to monitor the situation on the eastern border, and airspace surveillance has been intensified following the September 7 incident. It was reported that on that day, a Russian “Shahed” drone crashed in the Rezekne region, which raised public criticism over the decision not to intercept it or deploy NATO aircraft for protection.
Read also: Europe should rethink relations with Russia after war in Ukraine, – Macron
