NATO Must Show Russia That It Does Not Accept Any Violations of Its Airspace, Says Dutch Minister

Dutch Defense Minister Ruben Brekelmans emphasized the need for NATO to demonstrate to Russia that violations of the Alliance’s airspace are unacceptable. In an interview with Delfi, Brekelmans outlined his concerns about Russian drones entering NATO airspace.

“This is part of Russia’s strategy—to constantly push boundaries, testing how far they can go with each small step,” Brekelmans explained. “We must make it clear that this behavior is unacceptable.”

He acknowledged that individual NATO member states are equipped with air defense systems capable of handling simpler threats, such as drones. However, Brekelmans emphasized the importance of collective defense when necessary.

“Member states have their own means to destroy these drones, but when the threat is more complex, NATO must be ready to support. The alliance needs to continually assess whether we have sufficient resources to protect our airspace. If not, we must provide more assets to ensure adequate defense,” he said.

Brekelmans reiterated that NATO must firmly convey to Russia that any violation of its airspace will not be tolerated. Russia should be more careful, and NATO should show that we “do not accept any violations of our airspace,” he stressed.

This statement follows recent incidents along NATO’s eastern borders. Last week, an unidentified aerial object was detected near Latvia’s border with Belarus, crossing into the Kraslav region. NATO fighter jets were scrambled from the Lielvard base to inspect the area, but they found no suspicious activity in Latvian airspace.

Earlier in September, a Russian “Shahed” drone crashed in Latvia’s Rezekne Region. Despite monitoring the drone’s approach, the National Armed Forces chose not to intercept or engage NATO aircraft.