It was noted that on October 29, a Russian Il-20 reconnaissance aircraft flew over the Baltic Sea. Military MiG-29 aircraft of the Polish Air Force, on duty, detected an object located in the air, conducted visual identification, and removed it from the territory under Polish responsibility. The country's Operational Command announced this on its official X page.
The statement emphasized that the Russian aircraft operated through international airspace and performed reconnaissance missions. At the same time, he did not provide the flight plan, and the transponder (device for communication identification) was turned off. "The aircraft did not violate Polish airspace," the command clarified.
In recent months, there has been a sharp increase in suspicious flights and unidentified drone activity in the airspace of Poland and other NATO countries. In some cases, these drones also affected the operation of civil airports.
In particular, on September 19, the General Staff of the Estonian Defense Forces reported that three Russian MiG-31 aircraft entered the country's airspace through the Gulf of Finland without permission and remained there for about 12 minutes. Following this incident, the Estonian Ministry of Foreign Affairs delivered a note to the Russian Chargé d'Affaires.
The Russian Ministry of Defense, in turn, denied the accusations and stated that "Estonian territory was not violated, aircraft flew legally in international airspace."
European analysts link this type of situation to Russia's hybrid war as a tool of pressure on Western countries. According to them, Moscow is testing NATO countries' air defense systems through military flights and may be studying their response.
The Polish side has identified rapid action in such situations and strengthening air defense as one of its priorities. The country's official statement said that the approach of any neighboring country or unidentified aircraft to the airspace is considered a matter of NATO security.
Thus, the tension in the Baltic sky once again drew the attention of the international community. While the European side considers Russia's actions a provocation, Moscow considers them "typical intelligence activity." However, observers believe that each such incident increases the likelihood of a new diplomatic dispute and a security crisis.
Read “Zamin” on Telegram!
