NATO intercepts three Russian fighter jets in Estonia and detects two in Poland

BarcelonaAmid an increasingly tense atmosphere on NATO's eastern flank, Estonia has reported that three Russian military aircraft violated its airspace on Friday, marking the Kremlin's third incursion on the Alliance's borders this month. Three MiG-31 fighter jets—capable of carrying the Russian Kinjal hypersonic missile—flew without permission over an Estonian island in the Gulf of Finland, about 100 kilometers from the capital, Tallinn, forcing NATO forces to intervene. "On Friday morning [...], three Russian MIG-31 fighters entered Estonian airspace without permission, in the area of Vaindloo Island, and remained in Estonian airspace for almost twelve minutes," the Ministry of Defense said in a statement. Hours later, Poland also reported that two Russian aircraft flew at low altitude over one of its oil platforms in the Baltic Sea. Moscow continues to test NATO's limits in Europe.

Italian Air Force F-35 fighter jets, which were deployed to Estonia's Ämari air base as part of NATO's mission in the Baltics, "responded to the incident," the Defense Ministry explained. According to Estonia, the planes had no flight plans, their transponders were not turned on, and they were not in contact with air traffic control. Major Taavi Karotamm, a spokesman for the Estonian armed forces, told the AP that the Russian planes flew parallel to Estonia's border from east to west and were not headed toward the capital, Tallinn. The military official said Moscow's goal may be "to divert the attention of NATO and its members to self-defense, instead of strengthening Ukraine's defense." Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky reacted by urging allies to close ranks and calling for sanctions. "Russia must increasingly feel international pressure, primarily through its economy, and the best way to do this is through sanctions. It's also necessary to increase Russia's losses during the war, and this can be achieved with a strong Ukrainian army."

"A brazen act"

While incursions over Vaindloo Island by Russian aircraft are fairly common, they don't tend to last as long as this time. "Russia has violated Estonian airspace four times this year, which is unacceptable in itself, but today's violation, in which three fighter jets entered our airspace, is an unprecedented, brazen act," said Foreign Minister Margus Tsahkna, who must...

For his part, the NATO spokesperson confirmed that the Alliance responded immediately and intercepted the Russian aircraft. "This is yet another example of Russia's indiscriminate behavior and NATO's ability to respond," he wrote. European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen also condemned the incident in the same vein: "We will respond to every provocation with determination and invest in a stronger eastern flank. As threats grow, so will our pressure," she said. The head of European diplomacy and former Prime Minister of Estonia, Kaja Kallas, has accused Moscow of an "extremely dangerous provocation" and warned that "this escalates tensions." The incident comes just a week after Russia sent Russian drones to Poland and Romania coinciding with the nineteenth package of sanctions.

Poland reported earlier this month that around twenty Russian drones They had crossed their border during the night of September 9-10, and that some were headed for the strategic hub of Rzeszów. Polish forces, supported by NATO allies, shot down several drones and subsequently invoked NATO's Article 4, which requires the alliance to hold consultations.

On the other hand, Russian drones have also violated Romanian airspace on several occasions. The most recent incident occurred in mid-September, when Romania tracked a suspected Russian drone in its airspace for nearly 50 minutes. In May, Estonia reported that a Russian fighter jet had entered its airspace over the Baltic Sea to protect a ship from the so-called ghost fleet transporting oil to Moscow, bypassing sanctions. And from drones to Poland, NATO has launched the Eastern Sentinel mission to protect its eastern flank. The NATO Council will meet next week, after Estonia requested consultations under Article 4 of the Alliance's treaty, which stipulates that all members shall meet when there is a threat to the territory, political independence, or security of any of them.