The frequent incursion of Russian warplanes and drones into European countries signals a hybrid war, said Yuriy Boyechko, head of Hope for Ukraine.
In a statement following the latest violation of Estonian airspace, Boyechko advised the North Atlantic Treaty Organization to take stronger action against Moscow.
On Friday, Estonia notified that three Russian MiG-31 fighter jets entered its skies from the northeast without permission and remained there for about 12 minutes.
The government requested a meeting with other NATO members following the fifth breach recorded this year, invoking Article 4 of the alliance’s treaty.
But Russia’s defence ministry explained that the jets complied with international airspace regulations and “did not violate the borders of other states, as confirmed by objective monitoring.”
Estonia’s request was the second this month as Poland similarly solicited NATO’s intervention after Russian drones entered its airspace on September 10.
Boyechko accused President Putin of escalating his provocations against the alliance because he feels that “a window of opportunity” has opened.
The activist alleged that Putin was scheming to control Europe by sowing fear in the hearts of the citizens to pressure them into voting for pro-Russian politicians.
“The Russians officially started a hybrid war against NATO because there is no strong response from NATO to these acts of aggression by the Russian army,” he averred.
Boyechko urged the alliance to take a cue from Turkey’s reaction to a Russian jet violating its airspace in 2015, recalling how the aircraft was shot down within 5 minutes.
In the same week the Polish incident occurred, NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte announced the launch of ‘Eastern Sentry’, a military activity to combat problems associated with drones.
