“Moscow is doing this deliberately, combining it with intensified propaganda. We apologize to Estonia and all our Baltic friends for such unintentional incidents,” the Foreign Ministry spokesman said.
He added that Ukraine continues to work closely with relevant agencies to investigate each case and find ways to prevent similar incidents, with the involvement of Ukrainian expert groups.
Spokesman Heorhii Tykhyi stressed that, “unlike Russian propaganda claims, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania and Finland have never allowed their airspace to be used for strikes against Russia, and Ukraine has never asked for such permission.”
He added that Russia has no right to blame Ukraine or the Baltic states and Finland for the consequences of its own aggressive actions.
Estonian Defense Minister Hanno Pevkur said the incident involving the downed drone could be exploited by Russian propaganda for its own narratives.
“I want to confirm once again that immediately after what happened, I spoke with Ukraine’s defense minister. Estonia did not grant permission for the use of its airspace to anyone except its allies, and the Ukrainians never requested such permission. During our conversation, Ukraine’s defense minister apologized for the incident but at the same time expressed satisfaction that we had shot down the drone,” Pevkur said.
According to the minister, there is currently no information about any damage.
On May 19, Estonia shot down a drone from a Romanian fighter jet that was believed to have been heading toward targets inside Russia. It was the first time the country independently destroyed a drone in its airspace.
On March 25, Estonia reported that a drone had entered its territory from the direction of Russia. It struck the smokestack of a power plant in the village of Auvere in the Ida-Viru region. Estonian authorities later said it was likely a Ukrainian drone that had gone off course.