A Romanian fighter jet shot down a drone that entered the airspace of Estonia.

A drone that entered the airspace of Estonia was shot down over a lake by a Romanian F-16 aircraft, announced on Tuesday the Estonian Minister of Defense Hanno Pevkur.

According to the statements of the Estonian minister, the NATO military aircraft shot down a drone that was apparently of Ukrainian origin.

The incident generated a similar alert in Latvia, where authorities warned of a possible threat from drones.

"We are enhancing airspace surveillance with Latvia and Lithuania," he added. The drone was shot down by a Romanian fighter jet based in Šiauliai, Lithuania," Pevkur also said.

This, in the context that since March 31, the Romanian squadron "Carpathian Vipers" with six F-16s has been operating from Lithuania alongside the French Air Force, which took command of the mission with four Rafale aircraft on April 1. Also, four F-16 Fighting Falcons of the Portuguese Air Force are operating from Estonia.

Pevkur emphasized that this is the first time Estonia has shot down a drone, which was likely heading towards targets in Russia. Danger warnings have been issued in several Estonian localities, and in Latvia, in the municipalities of Ludza and Krāslava. The incident comes after a series of incursions by Ukrainian drones into the airspace of NATO states, generating political tensions in the region.

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