Investigations into mystery drone sightings were opened by German officials near key infrastructure in the state of northern Schleswig-Holstein. Domestic government files reveal that the unidentified aircraft had taken a deliberate tour of power plants, shipyards, and military installations. These attacks are correlated with the same type of drone interruptions in NATO countries.
Planned attacks are made on strategic infrastructure facilities of Germany
A swarm of drones that flew above the state of Schleswig-Holstein in Germany was intentionally inspecting the critical infrastructure of the NATO ally, such as a power plant and a navy base, according to a report published by Der Spiegel based on an internal government document. The interior minister of Schleswig-Holstein, Sabine Suttlerin Waack, confirmed having spotted the drones flying over the coastal state just south of Denmark overnight into Friday, September 26, and that the event is under investigation over a possible sabotage or espionage.
“Among other things, Schleswig-Holstein is intensely and continuously coordinating with the federal government and the Bundeswehr due to the recent events in Denmark and other European nations, Sütterlin-Waack said, reported Der Tagesspiegel. This is not the only security-related incident that involved drones last week, which involved sightings over Schleswig-Holstein. On Thursday too, there were suspicious drones over the Bundeswehr compound at Sanitz, Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania, and a day later an operation over the Navy Command at Rostock, according to Der Tagesspiegel.
Multiple military installations experience simultaneous drone incursions
It said that security experts are warning that critical infrastructure in Germany is not adequately secured. Monday, German Chancellor Friedrich Merz reported that drones had flown over vital infrastructure in both Germany and Denmark. According to Der Tagesspiegel, Merz said: “We do not really know where they really come from either. Suspicion is that they are of Russian origin.
Airspace intrusions in NATO increase over European boundaries
This news of drones going over Germany is supported by the findings by NATO Denmark into a spate of drone interference with its airports that the authorities have described as a hybrid attack, and is accompanied by Estonian, Polish, and Romanian claims that Russia is engaging in serious airspace intrusions, Newsweek reported. The allegations have been described by Russia as baseless.
This marked the first first-hand experience of both NATO and Russia since Russia began its war on Ukraine in February 2022. Russia has since been accused of testing the will of NATO by intruding on the airspace of Norway, Romania, Denmark, Lithuania, Estonia, and, most recently, Germany as well. On Sunday, President Volodymyr Zelensky of Ukraine claimed that Russia was using its own shadow fleet of sanctions-busting oil tankers to attack and control drones in Europe, and to demand the closure of the Baltic to the Russian tankers.
Intelligence reports link shadow fleet operations to drone activities
There are also indications that the Russians are sending out tankers to start and control drones in European nations, as pointed out by the Intelligence. This is another reason why the Baltic Sea and the rest of the seas should be closed to Russian tankers, at least to the shadow fleet, Zelensky said on Sunday. In a statement on September 23, NATO wrote: Russia should have no doubt that NATO and Allies will use, within the limits of international law, every possible military and non-military instrument as a means of self-defense.
The drone research of Germany is a significant turn in the European security issue, which shows the weakness of NATO in the protection of its critical infrastructures. The fact that these events were well coordinated in various countries indicates that there was advanced surveillance work on strategic assets. With the build-up along the eastern edges of NATO, such unexplained drone activities highlight why more sophisticated air defense is urgently needed.