Incursions of unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) over the EU’s critical infrastructure sites have escalated in recent months, with the European Commission dubbing them part of the hybrid war that Russia is conducting against the bloc. Russia denies the allegations.
Belgium’s National Air Security Center will be fully operational by Jan. 1, 2026, Francken said after holding an emergency meeting of the National Security Council on Thursday. Meanwhile, the Belgian government asked for help from Berlin, Paris and London, which are all sending air force experts.
Germany’s Defense Minister Boris Pistorius said that the drone incursions are linked to the ongoing talks on using Russian frozen assets to help fund Ukraine’s effort to defend itself against Moscow’s all-out invasion. The assets are mostly held in Belgium’s Euroclear facility.
“This is a measure aimed at spreading insecurity, at fearmongering in Belgium: Don’t you dare to touch the frozen assets. This cannot be interpreted any other way,” Pistorius said at a Friday press conference, Reuters reported.
Belgium’s government did not explicitly point fingers at Moscow, but the country’s secret service has little doubt about the origin of the drones, according to VRT. Francken said on Saturday that “Russia is clearly a plausible suspect.”