Three Russian MiG-31 fighters violated Estonian airspace on Friday in what Estonian Foreign Minister Margus Tsahkna described as Russia’s most “brazen” violation to date.
According to Estonia’s foreign ministry, the incursion took place over the Gulf of Finland, when three Russian MiG-31 fighter aircraft entered Estonian airspace and remained there for a total of 12 minutes.
Tsahkna summoned Russia’s chargé d’affaires in Estonia to deliver a note formally protesting the violation of its airspace.
“Russia’s increasingly extensive testing of boundaries and growing aggressiveness must be met with a swift increase in political and economic pressure,” Tsahkna said.
Russia has violated Estonian territory at least four times this year so far. On July 28, Tsakhna summoned Russia’s chargé d’affaires to account for a breach of its maritime border after a Russian border guard vessel entered the country’s territorial waters by nearly half a kilometer (0.3 mile).
However, Tsahkna described Friday’s incident as “unprecedentedly brazen.”
In the early hours of Sept. 10, at least 19 Russian drones entered Polish airspace, where they remained for around seven hours before being shot down by Polish and NATO forces.
Although Russia sought to downplay both its responsibility and the seriousness of the incident, it triggered widespread condemnation in Poland and among NATO member countries.
It also sparked conversations about Europe and NATO’s ability to respond to the increasing threat from Russia’s drone fleet.
NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte announced the launch of Operation Eastern Sentry to bolster defenses along the bloc’s eastern flank on Sept. 12.
Earlier on Friday, the EU Commissioner for Defense and Space told Reuters that the EU is planning talks about the possibility of creating a “drone wall” along its eastern border.
Russia’s foreign ministry has not yet commented publicly on Friday’s incident. However, NATO’s spokesperson confirmed on X that NATO forces had intercepted the Russian aircraft.
“This is yet another example of reckless Russian behavior and NATO’s ability to respond,” the spokesperson said.