NATO and UN call emergency meetings after Estonia airspace violation

International Desk | PNN

Germany’s Air Force scrambled two Eurofighter jets to intercept a Russian reconnaissance aircraft that entered the neutral airspace over the Baltic Sea.

In a statement on Sunday, the German Air Force said their “Quick Reaction Alert Force” acted swiftly under NATO’s directive. The aircraft was flying without a flight plan and without radio communication. It was later identified as a Russian IL-20M reconnaissance plane.

After visual identification, the German jets handed over the aircraft to NATO’s Swedish partners and returned to their base.

The incident occurred just days before NATO’s North Atlantic Council is scheduled to meet on Tuesday to discuss Estonia’s airspace violation. The Estonian government claimed that three Russian MiG-31 fighter jets entered its airspace on Friday and stayed for approximately 12 minutes.

Meanwhile, Estonia’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs stated that the United Nations Security Council will also hold an emergency meeting on Monday morning to discuss Russia’s “unprecedented and blatant airspace violation.”