Nato says it intercepted three Russian fighter jets that violated Estonian airspace

LAST UPDATE | 11 hrs ago

NATO HAS SAID it intercepted three Russian fighter jets that entered Estonian airspace without permission today. 

It comes over a week after Nato planes downed Russian drones over Poland and heightened fears that the war in Ukraine could spill over.

The Estonian military said the three Russian MiG-31 fighter jets entered its airspace without permission in the area of Vaindloo Island, a small island located in the Gulf of Finland in the Baltic Sea, and remained there for 12 minutes.

The aircraft did not have flight plans and their transponders were turned off, the statement said, nor were the aircraft in two-way radio communication with Estonian air traffic services.

Italian Air Force F-35 fighter jets, currently deployed as part of the Nato Baltic Air Policing Mission, responded to the incident, according to the statement.

Sweden and Finland also scrambled rapid reaction aircraft, a spokesman for the Supreme Headquarters Allied Powers Europe (SHAPE) told reporters.

Russian officials did not immediately comment.

“Earlier today, Russian jets violated Estonian airspace,” alliance spokesperson Allison Hart said in a statement on social media.

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“NATO responded immediately and intercepted the Russian aircraft. This is yet another example of reckless Russian behaviour and NATO’s ability to respond.”

‘These are not accidents’

Estonian prime minister Kristen Michal said the violent was “totally unacceptable” and confirmed that his government has requested “NATO Article 4 consultations”.

Article 4 states that a NATO member can convene urgent talks when it feels its “territorial integrity, political independence or security” are at risk.

Warsaw invoked Article 4 after it shot down what it said were Russian drones on 9 September. 

Estonian foreign minister Margus Tsahkna deemed the move “an unprecedented and brazen intrusion” and “clear proof of Russia’s growing aggression”.

“Such actions cannot be tolerated and must be met with swift political and economic pressure.”

The Russian charge d’affaires was summoned and given a protest note, a ministry statement said.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, whose country remains at war with Russia, accused Moscow of expanding its “destabilising activity” .

“These are not accidents. This is a systematic Russian campaign directed against Europe, against NATO, against the West. And it requires a systemic response,” Zelenskyy posted on X. 

‘Dangerous provocation’

The EU’s top diplomat Kaja Kallas, a former Estonian prime minister, accused Moscow of an “extremely dangerous provocation” after Estonia said three Russian MiG-31 fighter jets had violated its airspace.

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“This marks the third such violation of EU airspace in days and further escalates tensions in the region,” she said. 

Kallas said she is in close contact with the Estonian government, adding: “Putin is testing the West’s resolve. We must not show weakness.”

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said the bloc stands with Estonia “in the face of Russia’s latest violation of our airspace.”

“We will respond to every provocation with determination while investing in a stronger Eastern flank. As threats escalate, so too will our pressure,” she said, urging EU leaders to approve a proposed 19th package of sanctions on Moscow. 

Russia’s violation of Poland’s airspace was the most serious cross-border incident into a Nato member country since the war in Ukraine began with Russia’s all-out invasion in February 2022.

Other alliance countries have reported similar incursions and drone crashes on their territory. On Sunday, Romania summoned its Russian ambassador over the entry of a Russian drone into its airspace during an attack on neighbouring Ukraine.

The developments have increasingly rattled European governments as US-led efforts to stop the war in Ukraine have come to nothing.

With reporting from Press Association

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