Free Republic

"Quite a few planes violate Russia's airspace, accidentally and not accidentally. No one shoots them down," Alexey Meshkov emphasizedPARIS, September 25. /TASS/. Russia’s ambassador to France Alexey Meshkov has warned that if NATO were shooting down Russian planes allegedly violating the airspace of the alliance's member countries, that would mean war. "There would be war. What else could there be?" Meshkov said on RTL radio, responding to a question about Russia's possible response. "Quite a few planes violate our airspace, accidentally and not accidentally. No one shoots them down," the ambassador added. Meshkov also stated that Europe has not provided...

Three Russian MiG-31 fighter jets lingered in NATO-member Estonia's airspace for several minutes on Friday, according to Estonian authorities. Italian F-35s responded. Estonia's Prime Minister Kristen Michal said on Friday evening that the government has requested NATO Article 4 consultations with the alliance's allies following an airspace violation by Russian jets. "This morning, 3 Russian MiG-31 fighter jets entered Estonian airspace. NATO fighters responded, and the Russian planes were forced to flee," Michal wrote in a post on X. "Such violation is totally unacceptable." Foreign Minister Margus Tsahkna said the jets entered Estonian airspace and lingered over the Gulf of...

Baltic incidents—drones, airspace brushes, GNSS spoofing—could cascade into a NATO–Russia war driven by fear, honor, and interest. Opening phases likely favor NATO in air and sea with superior ISR, EW, and standoff fires; Russia counters with missiles, dense air defenses, cyber, and navigation attacks. Two plausible endgames emerge: a non-nuclear grind to an armistice shaped by attrition and political risk, or limited nuclear use to coerce termination, shattering the taboo and accelerating crisis instability.