NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte announced the launch of NATO Operation “Eastern Sentry” at a press conference in Belgium on Friday, in response to the incursion of at least 19 Russian drones into Polish airspace in the early hours of Wednesday morning.
The unprecedented violation of NATO airspace by Russian drones, only around four of which were shot down by allied warplanes, sparked concerns about the transatlantic alliance’s ability to defend its eastern flank.
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According to a NATO press release, the operation will be executed by NATO’s Allied Command Operations. General Alexus G. Grynkewich, NATO Supreme Allied Commander Europe, described the violation of Poland’s airspace as “not an isolated incident” and said that it impacts all of NATO.
“While a full assessment of the incident is ongoing, NATO is not waiting, we are acting,” Grynkewich said.
Speaking at a joint press conference in Brussels, Rutte decried Russia’s increasing “recklessness in the air along our eastern flank.”
Rutte added that Eastern Sentry will commence “in the coming days,” with the involvement of several NATO countries – including Denmark, France, Britain, and Germany.
Several of Poland’s allies have already committed military support to the defense of Polish airspace since Russia’s drone incursion on Wednesday. French President Emmanuel Macron said on Thursday that three Rafale fighter jets will be deployed to Poland, while Czechia will deploy troops and a specially modified drone interceptor helicopter to defend its neighbour.
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The Ukrainian president joked that US President Donald Trump’s special envoy is as effective as a Patriot missile defense system at deterring Russia’s aerial assaults on the capital.
Asked to be specific about what new military resources would be committed to the operation, Grynkewich cited the French Rafales as well as Danish F-16 fighter jets. He also said that a frigate and “some ground-based air defence capabilities” had been offered, though he did not specify by which countries.
“I would ask that we don’t focus on those specific items,” he added. “The key to this is an entirely new defense design.”
Grynkewich emphasized that Eastern Sentry will be “flexible and agile” – integrating air and ground-based defenses and improving information-sharing between nations.
Challenged on whether NATO has the resources to defend both Ukraine and its own member states, Grynkewich said that he “sees no conflict “ between the support that individual nations are providing to Ukraine and what they will provide to Eastern Sentry.
In fact, Grynkewich added, he wants Eastern Sentry to learn lessons from Ukraine – particularly regarding the weaponry and defenses that are most effective at repelling Russian attacks.
“In the end, it’s up to Russia how far they will take this,” Grynkewich said.
“We will defend ourselves. We are a defensive Alliance, not an offensive Alliance. We will defend this beautiful 32 Alliance, established in 1949 and will make sure that our one billion people stay safe and stay free,” the NATO leader said.
Also on Friday, the Kremlin said that peace talks between Ukraine and Russia are effectively paused – and blamed Ukraine’s European allies for “hindering” its peace efforts.
At the Yalta European Strategy Conference in Kyiv, President Volodymyr Zelensky warned that Putin’s maximalist ambitions have not changed.
“No matter what he tells anyone, it’s clear: he has so unleashed the war machine that he simply cannot stop it unless he is forced to fundamentally change his goals,” the president said.
“The Russian war machine will stop only when it runs out of fuel.”
