Six NATO Countries to Establish "Drone Wall" on Russian Border

A number of NATO countries, including Finland, Norway, Poland, and the Baltic States, plan to create a "drone wall" to protect their borders with Russia. This decision was made in response to numerous provocations by Russia, including orchestrating migrant flows and attempting to change maritime borders, according to the Financial Times.

Ministers from six countries reported that they discussed the creation of a coordinated drone system along their borders with Russia to prevent further provocations and to enhance defence. Specifically, Finland's Minister of the Interior, Mari Rantanen, mentioned that the plan aims to cover 1,340 km of the border with Russia. Lithuania's Minister of the Interior, Agnė Bilotaitė, added that each country must do its part and suggested using EU funds to implement the project.

Officials have not disclosed specific details yet, but it is evident that drones will be used to strengthen border patrolling and to detect attempts at illegal border crossings, as well as various sabotage attempts by the Russians.

It should be noted that Russia had earlier announced its intention to unilaterally expand its maritime borders with Lithuania and Finland, but later retracted these plans. The next day, Russian border guards removed 25 buoys marking the border in Estonian waters, sparking protests from Tallinn and statements of solidarity with Estonia from NATO and several countries.

Many NATO countries fear that Russia may "test the resilience" of their borders over the coming years, as intelligence services have uncovered numerous sabotage operations on their territories. Meanwhile, the war between Russia and Ukraine has highlighted the importance of drones, with both sides actively using them. As a result, several NATO countries have established or strengthened their anti-drone units.

It is worth recalling that The Gaze reported that Latvia's Foreign Minister Baiba Braže explained how the "drone coalition" led jointly by her country and the United Kingdom plans to meet the needs of the Ukrainian army. She noted that the plans of the "drone coalition" are aligned with Ukraine's needs, but these needs are constantly changing.