NATO says "Eastern Sentry" mission does not currently provide for shooting down Russian drones over Ukraine
The "Eastern Sentry" mission does not currently provide for shooting down Russian drones over Ukrainian territory.
A senior NATO official said this on condition of anonymity in a comment to Radio Liberty on 16 September, Censor.NET reported.
The NATO official called the appearance of Russian drones in Polish airspace "reckless and dangerous," and explained why it has not yet been classified as intentional.
"When analyzing a situation like this, you have to take many factors into account. Sometimes drone tracks can appear in duplicate. In other words, you may see several tracks on radar but only one drone, so a lot of work is needed to interpret that picture… This may one day become completely clear, or it may not," the official said.
He noted that a great deal of information can be gleaned from drone debris, and that the on-site investigation is, for obvious reasons, primarily Poland’s prerogative.
"But of course, NATO has worked and continues to work, drawing lessons from Ukraine in various ways through our daily interaction… It is absolutely a two-way street: Ukrainians learn from us, and at the same time our forces learn from Ukrainians… At many levels, political and military, NATO has very deep and enduring ties with Ukraine," the official added.
According to him, eight NATO member states have already joined, or intend to join, the "Eastern Sentry" mission, which is aimed at strengthening the alliance’s eastern flank.
Asked whether the prospect of shooting down aerial targets over Ukrainian territory as they approach NATO airspace (a move recently urged by Poland’s foreign minister) is being discussed, the official said the "Eastern Sentry" mission "applies only to the territory of allied states."
For context, Poland’s foreign minister, Radosław Sikorski, recently suggested the West should intercept Russian drones and missiles over Ukrainian airspace.
