NATO may “show cruelty” to Russian aircraft entering European airspace, NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte said in an interview with Newsmax TV.
Mark Rutte commented on the hypothetical violation of Estonia’s airspace by Russian MiG-31 fighter jets on 19 September 2025.
“What happened was that they entered our airspace, and the safest way was to remove them from our airspace. But if these aircraft pose a threat to our infrastructure and, of course, to our people living, for example, in Estonia <…>, then I can assure you that our military has all the authority and senior commanders to do what is necessary, including showing real toughness and, if necessary, removing these aircraft,” said the NATO Secretary General.
Earlier, the Russian Defence Ministry stated that MiG-31 fighters had made a scheduled flight from Karelia to the Kaliningrad region without violating the borders of other states, which was confirmed by objective monitoring.
