NATO fighter jets scrambled Friday morning after a drone entered Latvian airspace, with one Eurofighter shooting down the unmanned aircraft.
“NATO is ensuring that our skies are protected,” NATO Spokesperson Allison Hart said. “This morning, we saw Italian Eurofighters based in Lithuania and Turkish F-16s out of Estonia scramble, with one Eurofighter downing a drone over Latvian airspace.”
Hart said the incident followed another scramble a day earlier, when Romanian F-16s and Spanish F-18s responded after drones entered Romanian airspace near the Ukrainian border.
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“Day after day, NATO is ready and able to react to any potential threats, 24/7, to safeguard our territory & protect our people,” she said.
Newsweek reached out to Latvia’s National Armed Forces and Russia’s Defense Ministry for comment via email on Friday.
Latvian Military Issues Airspace Alert
Latvia’s National Armed Forces said a potential airspace threat was declared from 4 a.m. local time in the municipalities of Augšdaugava, Preiļi, Rēzekne, Balvi and Alūksne. NATO Baltic Air Patrol fighter jets were activated in response, the armed forces said.
The Latvian military said it and NATO allies were continuously monitoring the country’s airspace to enable an immediate response to potential threats. It also said Latvia had strengthened air defense capabilities along its eastern border by deploying additional units.
‘Russian aggression’ blamed
In a later update, Latvia’s National Armed Forces said NATO Baltic Air Patrol fighters had successfully shot down a foreign drone in Latvian airspace over Balvi. The military said the drone had entered Latvia “as a result of Russian electromagnetic warfare.”
The National Armed Forces said the airspace threats announced in Augšdaugava, Preiļi, Rēzekne, Balvi and Alūksne municipalities ended at 4:50 a.m.
“As long as Russia’s aggression in Ukraine continues, a recurrence of cases where foreign drones enter or approach Latvian airspace is possible,” Latvia’s military added.
In a social media post, Latvia’s Minister of Foreign Affairs Baiba Braže thanked “Italian allies” for “maintaining integrity of NATO airspace” after the drone was shot down over eastern Latvia.
Regional media quoted a spokesperson for the Latvian National Armed Forces Joint Headquarters as saying that the location of the drone debris was known but would not be disclosed for now.
The spokesperson also reportedly said that the drone was shot down at high altitude, meaning debris may have been scattered across a wide area. The Ukrainska Pravda media outlet noted reports of Ukrainian drone attacks overnight on Russia’s Ust-Luga port near St. Petersburg—with the shortest route to the port running past the eastern borders of Latvia and Estonia.
Newsweek also contacted Ukraine’s Ministry of Defense for comment via email.
Contact Newsweek editors for this story: John Fitzpatrick and Robert Greenall