German Chancellor Friedrich Merz recently said: “We are not at war, but we are not at peace either.” His words reflect the alarm that has gripped Europe after a series of incidents – overflights of Russian drones and aircraft over NATO countries, as well as cyber attacks and suspicious activity at sea, the publication said.
After eight decades of peace, the continent no longer feels safe. Former NATO Secretary General George Robertson warned that attacks on infrastructure and sabotage across Europe are not an accident, but a sign of a systemic threat. He called them “gray zone attacks” and urged Europeans to prepare for possible disruptions, even advising them to carry candles and flashlights.
Over the past month, airports in Poland, Denmark, Norway and Germany have been temporarily closed due to drones, the author recalls. NATO had to scramble fighter jets to intercept Russian aircraft near the borders of Estonia. Poland even activated Art. 4 of the NATO Charter, requiring consultations. There is also growing concern about the “shadow fleet” of the aggressor country, Russia, consisting of obsolete tankers and other vessels used to circumvent sanctions against the Russian Federation.
Experts believe Moscow is waging a hybrid war, testing how NATO allies are willing to defend each other, and trying to sow fear among citizens to weaken support for Ukraine, the publication says. Former Russian President Dmitry Medvedev bluntly said that Europeans should “feel the danger of war on their own skin.”
The West responded by strengthening air defense and the idea of creating a “drone wall” along its eastern borders. However, the use of expensive aircraft like the F-35 to shoot down cheap drones has shown that Europe urgently needs cheaper and more effective technology.
At the same time, there has never been such uncertainty about the reliability of US security guarantees to NATO partners. US President Donald Trump behaves unpredictably: he either demands to shoot down Russian planes, or says that the incidents are a “mistake.” European leaders do not understand how willing Washington is to support its allies, the author notes.
