Estonia advises Ukraine on safer drone attack routes amid Baltic incidents

Estonia has recommended that Ukraine adjust its flight paths when targeting Russian Baltic ports to reduce the risk of drones straying into Estonian airspace, Col. Ants Kiviselg, head of the Estonian Defence Forces Intelligence Center, said.

"We have recommended choosing attack corridors so that they do not enter Estonian airspace, although it is impossible to completely rule this out. Russian air defense activity is certainly also a factor, which is why drones end up here," Col. Kiviselg explained, ERR reports. 

In recent weeks, Ukraine has conducted repeated attacks on Russian oil processing and export facilities at the Baltic Sea ports of Ust-Luga and Primorsk. Some of Ukraine’s drones have veered off course, landing in Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, and Finland.

Russia has accused the Baltic states of allowing Ukraine to use their airspace for attacks, a claim Col. Kiviselg denied. Ukraine, in turn, says it has intelligence suggesting Russia is deliberately redirecting drones toward the Baltics.

He added that preventing such incidents entirely would require ending Russia’s war of aggression, which would eliminate Ukraine’s need to strike targets near Estonia.

"At the same time, it is impossible to completely exclude such situations, and the surest way to prevent drones from reaching Estonian territory is to end Russia's war of aggression, which would remove Ukraine's need to strike targets in our immediate vicinity," he said.

By Sabina Mammadli