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NATO weighs rules of engagement after Russian sorties near Alaska and over Estonia
U.S. and Canadian aircraft were scrambled overnight on 24–25 September after radar tracked two Russian Tu-95 bombers accompanied by two Su-35 fighters operating inside the Alaskan Air Defense Identification Zone (ADIZ). North American Aerospace Defense Command (NORAD) said the aircraft…
Poland moves to let its forces shoot down Russian drones over Ukraine without NATO sign-off
Poland is advancing legislative changes that would allow its armed forces to intercept Russian drones and missiles over Ukrainian territory without prior approval from NATO or the European Union. The proposal, first drafted by the Ministry of National Defence in…
Estonia open to UK nuclear-capable jets as NATO weighs response to Russian airspace breach
Estonia has signalled it is prepared to host British fighter jets capable of carrying nuclear weapons, as NATO members consider their rules of engagement following the breach of Estonian airspace by Russian aircraft last week. Defence minister Hanno Pevkur said…
Putin’s ‘military-technical’ threat marks a managed escalation ahead of NATO talks on Estonia
Vladimir Putin has shifted from ambiguity to overt threats. On Monday, at an extraordinary meeting of Russia’s Security Council convened on the eve of NATO consultations on an alleged 12-minute Russian incursion into Estonian airspace, the Russian leader warned the…
Trump withholds Taiwan security aid as White House pursues talks with Beijing
President Donald Trump declined to approve a US$400 million–plus military aid package for Taiwan over the summer, as his administration seeks a trade agreement and a possible autumn summit with China’s leader, Xi Jinping, according to multiple reports. The move…
Poland signals interest in nuclear sharing after Russian drone incursions
Poland’s new president, Karol Nawrocki, has signalled that Warsaw wants to participate in NATO’s nuclear-sharing arrangements and to develop “its own nuclear capabilities — energy, civilian and military”. Speaking in a televised interview with France’s LCI on 16–17 September, Mr…
Eastern Sentry Looks Reactive as Russian Drones Test NATO’s Eastern Flank
Repeated air alerts in Poland and Romania this week, coupled with NATO’s launch of the Eastern Sentry mission, underscore an alliance still reacting to events rather than shaping them. On 9–10 September, Poland became the first NATO member state to…
Poland’s Sikorski questions value of “security guarantees” for Ukraine, urges focus on funding and arms
Poland’s foreign minister, Radosław Sikorski, has questioned the usefulness of proposed “security guarantees” for Ukraine, arguing that such pledges would lack credibility without states willing to fight Russia if deterrence failed. Speaking at the Yalta European Strategy (YES) annual meeting…
NATO’s Expenditure Awakening: Europe’s Defence Renaissance, Not Just a Relay Race
There was a time—in the not-so-distant past—when NATO’s annual defence expenditure reports were greeted as regrettable necessities. Europe, it seemed, had other priorities: climate ambitions, social welfare, diplomatic fatigue, and the belief that security would always be outsourced across the…
Europe Braces for Trump’s Troop Gamble, and the Bill That Comes With It
As NATO allies tally up their defence budgets and contingency planners dust off maps of Europe’s eastern flank, one question now looms above all: how far is President Donald Trump prepared to go in scaling back America’s military footprint on…