Russia's hybrid warfare sends shock waves through Europe
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European leaders are sounding the alarm about so-called hybrid Russian warfare over confirmed and suspected aerial incursions in recent weeks in several countries.
Russian drones have entered Polish and Romanian airspace, Russian fighter jets have entered Estonian airspace, a Russian jet flew over a German Navy frigate in the Baltic Sea, airports in Denmark and Norway had to shut down temporarily due to unknown drone activity, and Germany is investigating whether Russia was responsible for a mysterious swarm of drones caught spying on a power plant, hospital, and shipyard — all within the last month.
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The first of these incidents occurred when Poland identified a drone incursion of unprecedented size on Sept. 9. It was not the first time Russian drones had entered NATO airspace, but the number of drones was unprecedented, and it was the first time NATO forces shot down possible threats in allied airspace.
The scrambling of NATO fighter jets to intercept the drones in Polish airspace was a stark example of how the alliance is currently using expensive weaponry to bring down much cheaper drones — a problem the United States faced with the Houthis in the Red Sea as well.