Mete Frederiksen, Photo: Reuters
Denmark has imposed a ban on civilian drone flights after drones were spotted overnight near several military facilities, following a week in which drone flights caused the temporary closure of several Danish airports.
The Danish military said it had deployed “several capacities” to bases in response to nighttime sightings, without providing details on the nature of the response, Reuters reports.
Drone flights earlier this week forced Denmark to close airports, including a nearly four-hour closure of Copenhagen Airport on Monday.
Denmark has labeled the drones as part of a “hybrid attack.” While it has not definitively said who was responsible, Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen has suggested Moscow could be behind it, calling Russia the main “country posing a threat to European security.” The Kremlin has denied responsibility.
Under the ban, civilian drones will be prevented from flying in Danish airspace from Monday to Friday next week, when Denmark, which holds the rotating EU presidency for the second half of this year, will host European leaders.
“We are currently in a difficult security situation and we must ensure the best possible conditions for the armed forces and police while they are responsible for security during the EU summit,” Defense Minister Troels Lund Poulsen said in a statement.
Denmark will host EU leaders on Wednesday, and on Thursday a summit of the wider 47-member European political community, which was formed to connect the EU with other friendly European states after Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in 2022.
A German air defense frigate arrived in Copenhagen on Sunday to help monitor airspace during these high-profile events.
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