A provocation between Russia and NATO occurred again in the Baltic Sea

Tensions are escalating in the Baltic Sea: Russian reconnaissance aircraft twice flew at extremely low altitude over the German frigate "Hamburg" (FGS Hamburg), ignoring radio requests. The incident occurred at the end of last week during NATO's "Neptune Strike 2025" exercises, as reported by German Defense Minister Boris Pistorius (SPD) on the sidelines of budget debates in the Bundestag on September 24, 2025. According to Der Spiegel and the German Ministry of Defense, the aircraft approached within 100 meters of the deck, which was qualified as an "unnecessary provocation." Pistorius stated: "The intrusions of Russian drones and combat aircraft deep into Polish and Estonian airspace, as well as flights over the German frigate in the Baltic Sea within a few days, clearly show that Russia is increasingly and more intensively literally testing boundaries, including in relation to NATO countries."

The Sachsen-class frigate "Hamburg" is participating in the multinational "Neptune Strike" maneuvers – NATO's largest operation in the Baltic since 2022, involving 20 ships and 10,000 military personnel from 15 countries. According to the German Ministry of Defense, the Russian aircraft did not respond to calls and did not turn on their transponders, which increased the risk of collision. This follows a series of violations: on September 10 – a Russian drone in Polish airspace, on September 19 – a MiG-31 over Estonia. Pistorius accused President Putin of trying to "identify and exploit weaknesses in the Alliance," but emphasized: "NATO responds decisively, but with necessary caution."

Moscow rejected the accusations, calling the incident a "NATO provocation" and claiming that the aircraft were flying over international waters. NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg confirmed in Brussels: "We remain vigilant; such actions by Russia are irresponsible and dangerous." Carnegie Europe analysts note: this is part of a "hybrid warfare" strategy, testing NATO's reaction against the backdrop of the war in Ukraine. In 2025, more than 15 violations have been recorded in the Baltic, which is 30% more than in 2024.