About a dozen Ukrainian drones have been shot down or nearly missed over the past two months, placing the Baltic region in a blurred zone between air safety, electronic warfare, and strategic ambiguity. Ukraine says its drones launched toward Russian ports in the Leningrad region were diverted and redirected against its allies. A NATO F-16 shot down one drone after it entered Estonian airspace, and another forced Lithuanian authorities to open public shelters. The incidents have increased political tension and public unease in a region that has long viewed Russia as the main threat. NATO and the EU attribute the problem to Moscow, while Russia accuses Baltic states of enabling Ukrainian operations and seeks to strain relations between the Baltics and Ukraine.
"About a dozen Ukrainian drones over the past two months has once again placed the Baltic region at the center of a gray zone where air safety, electronic warfare, and strategic ambiguity blur together. Ukraine says its attack drones, launched toward ports in the Leningrad region in Russia's northwest, have been diverted by the enemy and redirected against its allies. The situation is somewhat paradoxical."
"On Tuesday, a NATO F-16 shot down one of those Kyiv-launched unmanned aircraft after it entered Estonian airspace. A day later, another such device forced Lithuanian authorities to open the country's public shelters. The incidents are fueling political tension and public unease in a region long accustomed to viewing Russia as the principal threat, but which is now also beginning to monitor risks stemming from the defense of its main ally."
"In Brussels, both the EU and NATO insist the problem's root remains in Moscow. [The Ukrainian drones] are there [in the Baltics] because of the reckless, illegal, full-scale attack of Russia, starting in 2022, NATO secretary general Mark Rutte said on Wednesday. Russia, however, accuses Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania of facilitating Ukrainian operations against its territory an allegation Rutte called totally ridiculous."
"Allied sources believe that, beyond the possible use of electronic warfare, the Kremlin is seeking to strain relations between the Baltic countries and Ukraine. Ukraine's armed forces have had the Baltic region in their sights since the start of the war. Kyiv has orchestrated sabotage operations there against the Russia"
Read at english.elpais.com
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