UK military personnel and equipment are being sent to Belgium to help it bolster its defences after drone incursions on its airspace, suspected of being carried out by Russia. The new head of the UK military, Sir Richard Knighton, told the BBC's Sunday with Laura Kuenssberg that his Belgian counterpart asked for assistance earlier this week and that kit and personnel were on the way. Belgium's main airport Zavantem was forced to close temporarily on Thursday night after drones were spotted nearby.
Arrivals and departures were halted for several hours on Tuesday evening at Belgium's busiest airport, Brussels, leading to the cancellation of dozens of flights. The skies were also closed over Liege airport, an important hub for freight transport, leading to further cancellations, delays and diversions. Meanwhile, the mayor of the Flemish town of Diest reported that police and army officers had spotted four drones at the nearby Schaffen military airbase on Tuesday.
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EU commissioners are meeting today for a security college discussion on defence and security issues, where they will be joined by the secretary general of Nato, Mark Rutte. Their meeting comes amid growing concerns about drones appearing in European airspace, causing continuing disruption in parts of the Nordics. It remains unconfirmed who or what is behind them, but still prompted a strong reaction in the region.
Early on Thursday, Danish authorities reported that more than one drone had been spotted near Aalborg airport in the Jutland region of northern Denmark. The airport is used for both commercial and military flights, and its closure disrupted military operations, according to the police. The Danish police said the drone sightings in Aalborg followed a similar pattern to those that halted flights at Copenhagen airport for four hours on Monday, when several large, unidentified drones were spotted near the capital's airport.
The airports in Copenhagen and Oslo, the two busiest in the Nordic region, were shut for hours last night after drones were observed in their airspace late on Monday, leaving tens of thousands of passengers stranded as flights were diverted, delayed and cancelled. Police officers stand guard after all traffic has been closed at the Copenhagen Airport due to drone reports in Copenhagen, Denmark. Photograph: Steven Knap/Reuters The Danish and Norwegian authorities are understood to be in contact in case the two incidents were linked, NRK reported.
