Well, that is what you get from a reporter; simplistic statements. Commercial radar (and military) uses transponder return signals to identify contacts. The radar doesn't require it to detect an aircraft. However, ATC generally turns down the actual radar returns on their screens, because just looking at the transponder returns is easier, and ATC is focused on traffic management, not detection.
If the Russians keep this crap up, the Baltic ATCs will have to start looking for raw returns.
That and that most commercial radar doesn’t use a height finder and is dependent on the transponder for altitude