Finland and Sweden worked together to intercept a Russian military aircraft over the Gulf of Finland in what was the Nordic neighbours’ first joint operation of its kind.
Swedish Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson said Thursday’s mission demonstrated how the countries’ Quick Reaction Alert partnership can monitor and protect their airspace.
“It is a concrete expression of the readiness and trust we have built together – and an expression of the strength in the Nordic, Nordic-Baltic, and broader Nato cooperation in our part of the world,” Kristersson wrote in a post on X today.
“The Baltic Sea has never been as vulnerable as it is now – but it has also never been better protected than it is right now,” he added.
Fighter jets from the two air forces located and identified a group of Russian aircraft, including a transport plane and several fighter jets, according to the Finnish Air Force.
The Baltic Sea region, which includes the Gulf of Finland, has been on heightened alert since Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022. Concerns have been fueled by gas pipeline outages, airspace violations and reported drone sightings.
At the same time, fears are mounting across Europe that Vladimir Putin could be planning an attack on European countries.
Finland and Sweden both joined Nato after Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, abandoning decades of military non-alignment.
Finland and Sweden said today they had scrambled fighter jets to intercept and identify Russian military aircraft
The Finnish Air Force said jets from both countries tracked and identified Russian aircraft, including a transport plane and several fighter jets
Finland and Sweden joined Nato after Russia’s 2022 invasion of Ukraine
Their Nordic neighbours Norway, Iceland and Denmark were already Nato members, alongside the three Baltic states of Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania.
The joint air operation came as Denmark’s Defence Intelligence Service, known as the DDIS, warned on Thursday that the risk of Russian military action against Nato countries was increasing. It said a full-scale invasion remained “highly unlikely”, but could not be ruled out.
European nations have remained on alert for possible Russian interference, amid concerns that Moscow could target Kyiv’s Western supporters as the Kremlin’s war in Ukraine moves into its fifth year.
“There is a low but growing risk that Russia will launch a limited military attack against one or several Nato countries bordering Russia,” DDIS chief Thomas Ahrenkiel told a press conference presenting the agency’s updated assessment of the Russian threat.
CONTINUE READING: American Idol Contestant’s Mistress Says Divorce, Not Murder, Was Plan
Ahrenkiel said the agency still believed it was “highly unlikely that Russia would see any interest in invading a Nato country, but we cannot rule it out”.
The assessment also warned that Russia was likely to launch more “hybrid attacks” against targets in Western countries.
The DDIS said previous operations had “mainly been aimed at creating fear and weakening public support for aid to Ukraine”.
However, the agency said the attacks were increasingly designed to disrupt assistance reaching Ukraine. Possible tactics include sabotage targeting defence companies and railway shipments carrying military equipment.
The DDIS said it expected Russia to intensify such operations, potentially including “destructive cyber attacks that cripple critical societal functions”.
The agency also said there was a low risk of a limited military attack even if the war in Ukraine continued, as an attempt to redirect European resources away from Ukraine.
‘A limited military attack would be a desperate move on Russia’s part and, like the intensified hybrid attacks, could potentially take place in the coming months,’ the agency said.
Swedish Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson said the operation showed how the so-called Quick Reaction Alert cooperation could monitor and safeguard both countries’ airspace
Danish Soldiers take part in a Nato military exercise
However, the DDIS also noted that ‘a build-up of forces would require several months of preparation and will be difficult to conceal’.
Mr Ahrenkiel also stressed that although ‘Russia’s increased willingness to take risks has consequences for the security situation in Denmark’, notably through hybrid attacks, this does not mean that Russia is going to attack the Scandinavian country.
‘We do not expect a conventional Russian military attack against Denmark,’ he said.
Denmark’s national intelligence and security service PET meanwhile said in a statement that Russia’s increased willingness to take risks ‘may lead to an increase in both Russian influence activity and the espionage and sabotage threat in Denmark’.
PET had previously indicated that sabotage threats primarily target the defence industry and others directly linked to the military support of Ukraine.
