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NATO countries that are bordering Russia have agreed to develop a drone wall stretching from Norway to Poland in an effort to safeguard their external borders. The countries that agreed so far are Finland, Norway, Poland, and the Baltic states. Anti-drone systems will also be employed to provide safety against provocations from enemy countries.
Lithuanian Interior Minister Agnė Bilotaitė stated: “This is a completely new thing and the goal is to use drones and other technologies to protect our borders against provocations from unfriendly countries and to prevent smuggling.” Lithuania has reportedly already made plans to enhance the protection of its border with the help of drones, and the country’s State Border Guard Service has even recently established a UAV unit and is acquiring additional drones and anti-drone systems.
According to Interesting Engineering, the plan presented to the ministers involves covering the entire eastern border with technology capable of detecting and bringing down drones, as reported by Estonia’s Interior Minister Lauri Laanemets, who added that this capability is essential within and around major cities. “As a venture of this scale, it’s unique. Drone surveillance and anti-drone capability is crucial both for deterrence and for countering the influence activities of our eastern neighbor,” Laanemets told The Baltic Times and added that they must be prepared for situations where Russia will try to use drones to “disrupt our lives” as it is becoming more and more difficult to physically access Estonian territory.
The Estonian Police and Border Guard Board plans to install equipment along the eastern border to detect drones, and authorities believe that it is imperative to cover the entire eastern border and major cities with stationary drone surveillance and control capabilities. Deputy Director General of the Police and Border Guard Board Veiko Kommusaar told The Baltic Times: “In order to ensure the safety of our people, it is necessary that the Estonian state is able, at any moment, to detect drones flying over us and also bring them down if necessary.”
