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Denmark reports new drone sightings over its biggest military base Denmark and Norway report new drone sightings over major military bases
(about 4 hours later)
Unidentified drones spotted at several military sites including the Karup airbase on Friday night Unidentified drones spotted at the countries’ biggest military bases, Karup in Denmark and Orland in Norway
Unidentified drones flew over Danish military sites including its biggest base during Friday night, the latest in a slew of sightings officials have called a “hybrid attack” and hinted at possible Russian involvement. Unidentified drones have been spotted over major military bases in Denmark and Norway, the latest in a series of sightings some officials have hinted might be linked to Russia.
Drones were spotted at several military sites, a Danish military spokesperson told Agence France-Presse, refusing to provide other details. Drones were spotted on Friday night flying over Danish military sites including Karup, its largest base, while nearby Norway was also investigating “possible sightings of drones” early on Saturday near its biggest military base, Orland.
Police said one to two drones were observed on Friday at about 7.15pm local time near and over Karup airbase, the country’s biggest base that houses all of the armed forces’ helicopters, airspace surveillance, flight school and support functions. The sightings have shocked Europe. Germany’s interior minister has said he wants to authorise its military to shoot down drones, while EU leaders are due to meet in Copenhagen next week and are expected to discuss how to improve Europe’s defences and support Ukraine.
Karup is also home to parts of the defence command, according to the military’s website. On Friday defence ministers from 10 EU countries agreed to strengthen eastern defences with a so-called “drone wall” to deter Russia.
A police spokesperson, Simon Skelkjaer, said police could not comment on where the drones came from, adding: “We didn’t take them down.” On Saturday, Russia blasted the EU’s plans, with its foreign ministry saying the measures would lead to “an increase in military and political tensions on our continent,” according to a report on state news agency RIA Novosti.
Police were cooperating with the military in their investigation, he said. The ministry added that the plans amounted to “personal ambitions and political games of the EU’s ruling elites.”
The Karup base shares its runways with the Midtjylland civilian airport, which was briefly closed though no flights were affected as none were scheduled at that hour, Skelkjaer said. The comments come as drones sightings were confirmed at “several military sites” in Denmark, a military spokesperson said on Saturday.
Mysterious drone observations across the Scandinavian country since Monday have prompted the closure of several airports. The Danish public broadcaster DR reported that there were drones in the air inside and outside the fence of the Karup airbase around 8pm on Friday, according to Simon Skelkjær, spokesperson for the Central and West Jutland police.
Drone reports shut Oslo airport in Norway for several hours earlier in the week, after drone incursions in Polish and Romanian territory and the violation of Estonian airspace by Russian fighter jets. Skelkjaer said he could not comment on where the drones came from, adding: “We didn’t take them down.”
The Danish prime minister, Mette Frederiksen, said on Thursday that “over recent days, Denmark has been the victim of hybrid attacks”. Karup airbase houses all of the Danish armed forces’ helicopters, airspace surveillance and parts of the Danish Defence Command.
Investigators have so far failed to identify those responsible, but the Danish defence minister, Troels Lund Poulsen, said on Thursday the flights appeared to be “the work of a professional actor”. In Norway, Brynjar Stordal, a spokesperson for Norwegian’s joint headquarters, told AFP they were investigating the sightings, but “handling it as a drone sighting.”
Frederiksen has pointed the finger at Russia: “There is one main country that poses a threat to Europe’s security, and it is Russia.” At least two drones flew “for around an hour” in a restricted area close to Orland, the main base for Norway’s F-35 fighter jets and a key Nato base. “They were not engaged by us,” he said.
Moscow said on Thursday it “firmly rejects” any suggestion it was involved in the Danish incidents. Its embassy in Copenhagen called them “a staged provocation” in a post on social media. The new drone activity is the latest in a string of sightings over the past week above Nordic countries, some of which led to the temporary closing of airports, including the main airports in Copenhagen and Oslo on Monday night. Denmark said it was the victim of a “hybrid attack”.
The Danish justice minister, Peter Hummelgaard, said earlier this week the aim of the attacks was “to spread fear, create division and frighten us”. There was also a drone spotted late Friday over Germany’s northern Schleswig-Holstein state, which borders Denmark, state interior minister Sabine Sütterlin-Waack told local broadcaster NDR.
The drone flights began just days after Denmark announced it would acquire long-range precision weapons for the first time, as Russia would pose a threat “for years to come”. German interior minister Alexander Dobrindt said on Saturday that the threat from drones was “high” and the government was considering allowing the armed forces to shoot down drones under certain conditions. Police have the main responsibility for defending against drones.
Hummelgaard said Copenhagen would also acquire new enhanced capabilities to detect and neutralise drones. Dobrindt told journalists in Berlin that he wanted to revise air safety laws to allow the “shooting down of drones” by the armed forces, among other measures.
Defence ministers from 10 EU countries agreed on Friday to make a “drone wall” a priority for the bloc. The EU defence commissioner, Andrius Kubilius, said Europe needed to learn from Ukraine and swiftly build anti-drone defences. “It’s about being prepared so that critical infrastructure or large gatherings of people, for example, can be protected,” he said.
“We need to move fast,” Kubilius told AFP. “And we need to move, taking all the lessons from Ukraine and making this drone wall together with Ukraine.” “What we are witnessing is an arms race – an arms race between drone threats and drone defence. We must prepare ourselves for this,” he added.
Copenhagen will host an EU summit gathering heads of government on Wednesday and Thursday. Copenhagen has also said it plans to acquire new enhanced capabilities to detect and neutralise drones.
The Danish government said it had accepted Sweden’s offer of its anti-drone technology to ensure the meeting could go ahead without disruption. Russia is the prime suspect behind the recent drone incursions, with Danish prime minister Mette Frederiksen on Thursday saying, “There is one main country that poses a threat to Europe’s security, and it is Russia.”
Although no definitive proof has been provided to back this up, Danish defence minister Troels Lund Poulsen said Thursday that the flights appeared to be “the work of a professional actor”.
The drone flights began just days after Denmark said last Wednesday it would acquire “long-range precision weapons” for the first time to counter the threat from Russia.
Danish justice minister Peter Hummelgaard said the aim of the attacks was “to spread fear, create division and frighten us”.
This follows similar drone activity over Romania and Poland in the last few weeks, as well as Russian fighter jets violating Estonian airspace, which has raised concerns over the security of northern Europe and its vulnerability to air attack from Russia.
Moscow has denied breaching Nato’s airspace, calling the EU’s reaction a “hysteria” on Wednesday.
Agence France-Presse contributed to this report