NATO Scrambling Response as Russian Aircraft Continue to Violate EU Airspace

Two German jets scrambled Sunday to intercept a Russian military aircraft above the Baltic Sea, the latest in what NATO leaders are calling a series of deliberate, provocative acts by the Kremlin aimed at testing the defense alliance’s reactions, the Guardian reported. 

Germany’s air force said Sunday that it sent out Eurofighter jets after a Russian Il-20M reconnaissance plane had switched off its transponders and ignored requests to make contact. 

The incident marked the latest incursion by Russian planes in recent weeks: Three Russian fighter jets violated Estonian airspace for 12 minutes on Friday. 

On Saturday, Estonia’s military said the MiG-31 jets crossed into its territory between 9:58 a.m. and 10:10 a.m. Friday near Vaindloo Island in the Gulf of Finland, before being intercepted by Italian F-35s from NATO’s Baltic Air Policing Mission, the Associated Press noted. 

Russia’s Defense Ministry denied that its aircraft violated Estonian airspace, saying its jets had kept to neutral Baltic Sea waters nearly two miles from Vaindloo Island. 

However, Estonian leaders dismissed Moscow’s claims and called Friday’s incident an “unprecedentedly brazen” incursion, with Foreign Minister Margus Tsahkna noting that it was the fourth time Russia had violated Estonia’s airspace this year. 

The incursion prompted Tallinn to invoke NATO’s Article 4, which allows members to meet with allies if their security is threatened. 

Estonian Defense Minister Hanno Pevkur stressed that while there was no immediate military threat, the move was part of a broader Russian strategy to distract Western resources from Ukraine through hybrid warfare, airspace incursions, and cyberattacks. 

Friday’s breach followed a string of recent provocations in the past two weeks, including the entry of 19 Russian drones into Polish airspace and a drone breach over Romania, both NATO members. Poland also invoked Article 4, prompting NATO to launch its “Eastern Sentry” mission to bolster defenses along its eastern flank, the Washington Post wrote.  

The recent incidents have drawn criticism from the European Union and other NATO members, with Czech President Petr Pavel calling for the military alliance to respond more forcefully – even by shooting down intruding jets – to deter Moscow. 

Analysts said the weekend incident came as Washington is planning to stop longtime security assistance programs for Europe, including a program to fortify the continent’s eastern flank against a potential attack by Russia. 

Last month, the Pentagon told European security officials it would defund a long-running $200 million security aid program meant to boost the defenses of Baltic nations, a signal critics say undermines NATO’s deterrence posture as Russian tests intensify. 

Even so, when asked if Washington was willing to defend its European allies from Russian aggression, US President Donald Trump on Sunday said: “Yeah, I would. I would.” 

Meanwhile, EU countries announced the bloc’s 19th sanction package against Russia that includes an end to imports of Russian liquefied natural gas by 2027, while also targeting firms and cryptocurrency platforms that do business with Russia and Moscow’s “shadow fleet” of ships evading a ban on Russian oil. It is still pending approval.