The initiative, however, faces difficulties in its concrete implementation because Germany and France are unwilling to invest in projects deemed "unprofitable"
Recently, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Finland and Norway, including six NATO interior ministers, jointly decided to build a "drone defense wall" on the eastern flank of the border line.
Credit Daily Mail
Under the project, the countries will send drones to carry out surveillance missions, real-time sharing of "infiltration threats" and other information in order to realize regional integration of intelligence resources.
Building an "invisible wall of defense"
The initiative was initially launched by Lithuania and Poland and supported by the other four countries. Lithuanian Interior Minister Biloteit said the defense wall, which begins in Norway and extends along the borders of Finland and the Baltic Sea to Poland, will be built through a "full-coverage, no blind spot unmanned surveillance system" to build an "invisible defense wall."
Operators from each country will use their own drones and process information from a safe distance, while the relevant supporting infrastructure will be customized to ensure system reliability and ease of operation.
Regarding the alert mechanism, Norway and Finland proposed a "zone responsibility," under which each country would be responsible for drone reconnaissance activities within its territory and initiate timely alerts when anomalies are detected.
Poland expressed reservations about this proposal, arguing that it would not take full advantage of the power of allied cooperation. Estonia proposed a "grand displacement" system, under which the six countries would sign an agreement on the safe use of drones along their borders, modeled after the European Joint Force, and each country would contribute a dedicated force to conduct joint drone patrols.
Foreign media analyses believe that once the "drone defense wall" is established, the six NATO countries will create the world's first multinational joint drone force to maintain border security through integrated troop deployment, and the "big shift" system is likely to become its main style of service. In addition to sending drones into service, the six countries also plan to deploy different types of counter-drone systems along the border to enhance counter-surveillance and counter-infiltration capabilities.
At present, the initiative is still in the planning stage and faces difficulties in concrete implementation. The first is the issue of funding sharing. The six countries hope to obtain funds from EU defense funding, but Norway is not an EU member, and Germany, France and other EU member states are reluctant to invest in a project "without benefit to themselves," resulting in greater difficulties in raising funds. For this reason, the six countries plan to hold a special meeting in early September to discuss it.
Second, national public opinion in the six countries is generally wary of leaving border security to neighboring countries in charge of the drones. In the past, Norway and Finland have disputed the extent of troop deployment in the border area, and Estonia and Lithuania have also had disputes over border patrols. Poland, with its long borders, is seen as the biggest beneficiary of the "drone defense wall" project, which has led Lithuania and others to fear that Poland is using the opportunity to expand its influence in regional affairs.
The three Baltic states hope to take this opportunity to strengthen their armaments. Lithuania has announced that it will establish a drone unit within the border guard service, while Estonia has said it will pursue the Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) detection and combat project and plans to introduce U.S.-made UAVs.
Reportedly, due to the particular geographical location, the three Baltic countries have sought within the NATO and EU framework of "common security," the drone defense wall project will provide an opportunity for their cooperation.
As a non-member of the EU, Norway wants to use the project to get involved in regional affairs and strengthen its presence. At the same time, like the United States and other Western Northern European "spokesmen," Norway hopes to continue to play an important role in NATO's security chain linking polar and eastern Europe.
Finland, a NATO member for just over a year, hopes to continue to expand its role in European defense to gain further support from the United States and other countries.
Some analysts believe that the six NATO countries have their own ideas, which could lead to problems in the implementation of the "drone defense wall" project. At the moment, the issue of disagreement concerns Poland: President Duda argues that within the NATO framework defense and security should be strengthened, while Prime Minister Tusk insists on "EU first." There are also demonstrations in Finland and Latvia against the project.
Some analysts believe that the six NATO countries have their own ideas, which could lead to problems in implementing the project.
At the moment, the issue of disagreement concerns Poland: President Duda argues that within the framework of NATO, defense and security should be strengthened, while Prime Minister Tusk insists on "EU first." There are also demonstrations in Finland and Latvia against the project.
NATO's military deployment in northern and eastern Europe continues to increase.
Not long ago, NATO announced the establishment of the Nordic Land Forces Command in the Finnish city of Mikkeli. The agency is on a "24-hour state of high alert" and in wartime will take over Sweden, Norway, Finland and other countries' land forces.
This was followed by Finland's announcement that it would turn three key shipping nodes in the eastern Gulf of Finland into "military border observation points" and that it would work with Estonia to create a submarine "line of communication" across the Baltic Sea.
NATO military deployments on the eastern flank will be further enhanced as the "Drone Defense Wall" project progresses.
Within the EU, compared with the traditional "old European countries" such as France, Germany and Italy, the so-called "new European countries," such as Poland and Finland, tend to strengthen their presence in regional affairs through "regrouping."
The three Baltic countries and the Nordic countries are investing in defense.
The three Baltic countries and the Nordic countries are gradually increasing the percentage of their GDP allocated to defense. Poland, after announcing a "record-breaking" military purchase order, is purchasing advanced air-to-surface missiles from the United States. It is expected that under the "war economy model," the "new European countries" will be pushed to the forefront of military confrontation.
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