NATO jets shoot down drone over Latvia; military blames Russian electronic warfare

Published Aug 14, 07:33 AM UTC

On August 14, 2026, a drone entered Latvian airspace over the Balvi municipality bordering Russia and was shot down by Italian Eurofighter jets participating in the NATO Baltic Air Policing Mission. The Latvian military described it as a foreign drone that entered due to Russian electronic warfare, suggesting it may have been a misdirected Ukrainian drone. An air alert was issued, urging residents to stay indoors, and was later lifted. This incident follows several similar occurrences during the Ukraine war, where Ukrainian drones targeting northwestern Russia strayed into Latvian airspace. Previous such events triggered a political crisis in Latvia, leading to a change of government and a new cooperation agreement with Ukraine on drone defense. No damages or injuries were reported.

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