In a potentially provocative move ahead of a major NATO summit, Estonia has accused Russia of violating its airspace for the first time via helicopter.

The Baltic state, which is a member of NATO, has also stated that current Russian military exercises simulate daily missile strikes against its territory.

The Baltic state, which is a member of NATO, has also stated that current Russian military exercises simulate daily missile strikes against its territory.

“This is an illustration of the threat. How we perceive the Russian menace… It has never been this serious before “Tuesday, the top civil servant of the Estonian defense ministry, Kusti Salm, told journalists:

Russia is engaged in a heated discussion with Lithuania, another Baltic nation and fierce critic of Vladimir Putin’s administration, over Lithuania’s decision to ban the rail transportation of some sanctioned products to the Russian region of Kaliningrad.

It also occurred only days before the chiefs of state and government of the 30-member NATO alliance convene in Madrid for a historic meeting, where they will submit plans for a dramatic reworking of their defenses in response to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

Estonia has called the Russian ambassador to Tallinn to protest the flight route of an MI-8 border security helicopter that allegedly entered Estonian airspace for two minutes on Saturday evening without permission.

According to a statement from Estonia’s military, the event occurred in the southern Koidula region, not far from the Russian city of Pskov.

In the previous week, Mr. Salm reported “several border violations by helicopters” from Russia.

He said that one chopper had crossed the border and another had flown quite close. He stated that these helicopter events had occurred “many times in the region.”