NATO jets shoot down drone over eastern Latvia after airspace breach

Latvia’s armed forces reported that allied NATO fighter jets intercepted and destroyed a drone that breached the country’s airspace in the northeastern Balvi district in the early hours of Friday. The incursion prompted authorities to issue an orange air alert for several eastern municipalities, including Augsdaugava, Preili, Rezekne, Balvi and Aluksne, just before 4 a.m. local time.

Residents in those areas received mobile phone push alerts advising them to take immediate precautions and seek shelter. The warning was lifted roughly an hour later after the drone had been shot down, according to the military.

The armed forces released no immediate details about the drone’s point of origin. They described the aircraft as a foreign unmanned aerial vehicle and said it appeared to have entered Latvian airspace as a result of Russian electronic warfare, suggesting that it might have been a Ukrainian drone. Iveta Bērziņa, a spokesperson for the Latvian armed forces’ Joint Headquarters, told Latvian Radio that she could not confirm how close to populated areas the drone was when it was destroyed.

In response to the incident, Finland temporarily restricted air and maritime traffic in the eastern part of the Gulf of Finland, based on information provided by Latvian authorities.

It was not initially clear which NATO air unit carried out the interception. The alliance rotates responsibility for guarding the airspace of Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania. At present, the Turkish air force is deployed in Estonia, while Italy leads NATO’s air defence mission in Lithuania.

Latvia, an EU and NATO member with around 1.9 million people, shares a border with Russia. During the war in Ukraine, both Russia and Ukraine have used drones extensively, and several have crossed into or approached the airspace of NATO countries in the region.