The opposition in Estonia demands the closing of the border with Russia, after the incident with the hunting planes. The response of the government
MIG-31 fighter jets at a parade in Moscow, May 2021. Photo: Aarrows | Dreamstime.com
Following Resalu, the president of the Isama Party, said that the incident on Friday, when Russian fighter jets violated Estonia's airspace, shows why the eastern border of the country is to be closed, the EER public television transmits.
On Friday, three MIG-31 battle aircraft of Russia entered the Eston airspace, in the area of Finland, and flowed for 12 minutes.
“I think it is appropriate to respond to this increasingly challenging activity of Russia by closing the Eastern border. The security situation becomes clearly tense, including the Eastern border, and I think this is a relevant response to Russia's behavior,” Resalu told ERR.
“We must also analyze what our options are, what tools we can use to condemn and respond to Russia's actions. And I think this is a justified step,” he added.
The leader of the Estone opposition formation said that for a possible closure of the East Border, the southern neighbors of Estonia must be consulted, so that this step can be jointly implemented.
The Minister of Interior does not consider the measure adequate
Minister Igor Taro said that there was no eventual closure of the earth's border for now, as it was a violation of the air space, not a ground challenge. Therefore, he believes, it would not be an adequate response.
“As for the earth's border, it is still based mainly on evaluating threats related to what is happening on the ground, what happens at the border crossing points, what is happening at our green border, Lake Pepsi. Currently, there are no significant changes there. Look at the terrestrial border, ”said Taro.
He called Reinsalu's calls a political stunt.
Discussions in the North Atlantic Council
After the incident on Friday, the Tallinn authorities asked for activation in Article 4 of the NATO Treaty of Washington, which establishes that “the parties will consult each other whenever, in the opinion of any of them, the territorial integrity, political independence or the security of any of the parties is threatened.”
It is for the ninth time in the history of the Alliance when Article 4 of the Washington Treaty is triggered, but the second time in less than 10 days, according to The Guardian. Poland resorted to a similar gesture on September 10, when it claimed that the national airspace was violated by at least 19 Russian drones.
The North Atlantic Council will meet at the beginning of next week to discuss in detail the violation of the Eston airspace by Russia, NATO spokesman, Allison Hart announced following the request made by Estonian.
This month, a drone of Russia Russia also violated the air space of Romania.
On September 13, in the area of Chilia Veche in the Delta, a Russian drone sailed for 50 minutes in the airspace of Romania, then leaving the country, under the monitoring of NATO military aircraft.
Photo: Aarrows | Dreamstime.com
