Six NATO countries are planning to develop a “drone wall” that they say will help protect their borders with Russia, citing “a series of provocations ranging from forced migration to attempts to change borders”.
Ministers from Finland, Norway, Poland and the three Baltic states said at the weekend that they were discussing the creation of a coordinated drone system along their borders with Russia to prevent smuggling and new provocations, and to help with defence.
“This is something completely new, a drone wall stretching from Norway to Poland … and the aim is to use drones and other technologies to protect our borders … against provocations from unfriendly countries and to prevent smuggling,” Lithuanian Interior Minister Agnė Bilotaitė told the Baltic News Service.
Finnish Interior Minister Mari Rantanen told public broadcaster Yle that the drone wall plan would “develop over time” and could help protect the Nordic country’s 1,340km border with Russia.
No details were given on the timing of the drone wall or how it would work. Bilotaitė said each country would have to do its own “homework”, noting that EU funds could also be used.
Tensions between Russia and NATO countries in the Baltic region have increased in recent weeks. Last week, the Russian defence ministry posted on its website a draft proposal to unilaterally extend its maritime borders with Lithuania and Finland, which was later removed.
A day later, Russian border guards removed 25 buoys marking the border from Estonian waters, sparking anger from NATO and some member states, as well as messages of support for Tallinn.
Many NATO countries believe that Russia could ‘test’ NATO’s borders in the next five to ten years, while intelligence services have suggested a series of sabotage operations on their territory.
The six NATO countries also discussed plans to evacuate large sections of their populations in the event of a conflict. Finnish officials, for example, expressed surprise that Ukraine was keeping its civilian population on or near the front line, and said the Nordic country’s defence plans included evacuating its border population.
