NATO intercepted three
Russian jets that violated
Estonia’s airspace on Friday, the country’s foreign ministry and an alliance spokesperson said.
Three Russian MiG-31 fighter jets entered Estonian airspace over the
Gulf of Finland without permission and remained there for a total of 12 minutes, the Estonian foreign ministry said.
Italian F-35 fighters that were stationed in Estonia as part of
NATO’s Eastern Sentry operation, in addition to Swedish and Finnish aircraft, responded to the intrusion, NATO Allied Command Operations headquarters said.
Estonian Prime Minister
Kristen Michal said the Russian jets were subsequently “forced to flee.”
NATO Secretary General
Mark Rutte praised the alliance’s response as “quick and decisive.”
Russia later denied its jets had entered Estonian airspace, insisting the flight was carried out “in strict accordance with international rules” and “without violating the borders of other countries.”
The Russian ministry of defense said the jets flew over “the neutral waters of the Baltic Sea” on their way from Karelia, a republic in northwest Russia, to an airfield in the
Kaliningrad region, a Russian exclave situated between Poland and Lithuania, and were more than three kilometers from the northernmost point of Estonia’s territory.
Estonia has requested
NATO Article 4 consultations following the “totally unacceptable” violation, the Estonian prime minister said. NATO spokesperson Allison Hart said the North Atlantic Council will convene early next week to discuss the incident in more detail.
Article 4 of the NATO treaty states that any member country can formally bring an issue to the attention of the council, the alliance’s principal decision-making body, to meet and discuss next steps when the territorial integrity, political independence or security of the member country is threatened.
Poland triggered such a consultation after several Russian drones and fighter jets entered its airspace last week.
The Estonian foreign ministry said it had summoned Russia’s chargé d’affaires over the incident.
Hours later, Poland’s border guard reported that two Russian fighter jets conducted a “low-level pass” over an oil platform in the Baltic Sea owned by the
Polish oil company Petrobaltic.
“Polish security services are constantly monitoring the situation,” the border guard said.
‘Unprecedentedly brazen’
The instances are the latest cases of NATO member countries reporting airspace violations by Russian jets and drones in recent days.
“Russia has already violated Estonia’s airspace four times this year, which in itself is unacceptable. But today’s incursion, involving three fighter aircraft entering our airspace, is unprecedentedly brazen,” Estonian Foreign Minister
Margus Tsahkna said.
“Russia’s increasingly extensive testing of boundaries and growing aggressiveness must be met with a swift increase in political and economic pressure,” Tsahkna said.
Romania’s foreign minister
Oana Toiu told CNN’s Isa Soares that she had spoken to her Estonian counterpart about the incident.
“We are clear on the fact that it is unacceptable,” Toiu said. “Russia is trying to undermine NATO’s coherence, but I think they’re achieving the exact opposite.”
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