That could send drones into NATO’s immediate vicinity — something Baltic and Ukrainian officials say is now happening.
For Kyiv, the balance is delicate. Ukrainian officials have apologized for incidents involving drones, insisting that attacks on Russian military and economic targets are legitimate acts of self-defense. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has shown no sign of ending the bombing campaign, which he calls “sanctions” aimed at bringing Russia to its knees.
Russia’s air defenses are deteriorating, prompting it to try to use political pressure to halt airstrikes in Ukraine.
“Russia wants to discredit Ukraine in the eyes of countries that are one of the most important countries in terms of direct and indirect aid to Ukraine,” Mykola Bielskov, senior military analyst for the Come Back Alive Initiative and research fellow at the National Institute for Strategic Studies of Ukraine, told POLITICO. The goal, he said, is to create “a point of confusion and division” between Kyiv and the Baltic countries.
So far, that effect has not been seen. Baltic officials do not blame Ukraine for deliberately endangering them, and Latvia has indicated it will not initiate NATO’s Article 4 consultation process over the invasion.
Instead of disrupting the relationship between Ukraine and its allies, it seems to be strengthening.
In X post Addressing fellow leaders of Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania, Wadephul said Germany stood in solidarity with its Baltic allies, adding: “A threat against one ally is a threat against the entire Union. We will not be intimidated. We stand together.”
