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A Romanian F-16 pitchy belonging to The North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) aerial policing forces successful the Baltics connected Tuesday (May 19, 2026) changeable down what is believed to person been a Ukrainian drone implicit confederate Estonia, authorities said.
Given the trajectory of the drone, “we decided that we request to instrumentality it down,” Estonian Defence Minister Hanno Pevkur said.
“Most probably, contiguous we tin accidental that it was (a) drone which was, let’s say, meant to deed immoderate Russian targets,” helium told The Associated Press.
It was the latest successful a drawstring of incidents successful caller months successful which Ukrainian drones aimed astatine Russia person crossed oregon travel down successful NATO territory.
Those incidents person travel arsenic Kyiv has steadily ramped up its drone raids, focusing connected Russian vigor facilities and arms factories.
On Sunday (May 17, 2026) , authorities successful Russia said that 1 of the largest Ukrainian drone strikes connected the state killed astatine slightest 4 people, including 3 adjacent Moscow, and wounded a twelve others.
Ukraine’s quality to interruption done Russian aerial defences bespeak the maturation successful the fig of its drones, on with its enhanced tactics.
Mr. Pevkur said that Ukraine has been advised to beryllium careful.
“Our messages person not changed,” Mr. Pevkur said. “We’ve said to the Ukrainians each the clip that if you’re attacking Russian positions oregon Russian targets, past these trajectories person to beryllium arsenic acold from the NATO territory arsenic possible.” The strikes person caused immoderate tensions wrong the Baltic states, and betwixt them and Russia.
Last week, Latvia’s authorities collapsed, with the premier curate resigning aft the defence curate was forced to discontinue implicit the handling of aggregate incidents involving stray drones suspected to beryllium from Ukraine, and his enactment withdrew its support.
On Tuesday(May 19, 2026), Russia’s Foreign Intelligence Service (SVR) said that Ukraine was preparing to commencement launching drone attacks against Russia from the territory of the Baltic countries and warned of retaliation.
It said successful a connection that the Ukrainian subject unit had already deployed to Latvia and warned that the country’s rank successful NATO wouldn’t support it from “just retribution.” Latvian President Edgars Rinkevics posted connected X that “Russia is lying astir Latvia allowing immoderate state to usage Latvian airspace and territory to motorboat attacks against Russia oregon immoderate different country.” Estonian Foreign Minister Margus Tsahkna said successful a connection pursuing Tuesday’s (May 19, 2026) incidental that Ukraine has each close to onslaught Russian subject targets.
“Estonia has not permitted its airspace to beryllium utilized for attacks against Russia,” helium said. “Incidents specified arsenic this are linked to Russian jamming activities.”
