Russia has become a permanent security threat to Europe, Luxembourg PM says

LUXEMBOURG – Europe is not at war with Russia, but it needs to take its threats seriously, Luxembourg’s head of state told CNBC Tuesday in an exclusive interview.

A number of European nations have flagged new Russian threats in recent weeks. Poland, Romania and Estonia have all reported airspace violations by Russian jets or drones, while Denmark cited several “drone incidents” last week, and said it could not rule out that Moscow was involved.

It has led some European officials, including the EU’s Commissioner for Economic Affairs Valdis Dombrovskis, to say Europe is already in a “hybrid war” with Russia.

“We clearly see that Russia has become a permanent threat to European security,” Luc Frieden, prime minister of Luxembourg, told CNBC Tuesday, although he said he did not yet believe the continent was facing a war with Russia.

“There’s a certain kind of provocation that we have to take seriously. I don’t think that we are at war with Russia, and I don’t want us to be at war,” he said.

Frieden said his message to Russia was to stop what it was doing and to leave the Ukrainians alone.

“We need to take your security interests seriously, but you also need to know that you have no chance in conquering Europe and there’s no chance of re-establishing a Soviet Union,” he added.

Frieden’s comments came on the eve of a gathering of EU leaders where they will be debating new measures designed to make the continent safer. This includes the idea of a “drone wall” in the eastern part of Europe, close to the Russian border.

This defense system would be designed to intercept unauthorized drones before they enter European airspace. 

The “drone wall initiative is timely and necessary,” NATO’s Secretary General Mark Rutte said Tuesday.  Luxembourg’s leader said he needed “to listen to the experts,” but he was open to the idea. 

The concept is raising concerns that the bloc is still too slow in improving its deterrence options, however.

“We are not talking about a concept that will be realized in the next three or four years,” Germany’s Defense Minister Boris Pistorius said at an event, according to Politico.

The latest incidents also highlight how ill-prepared the bloc is amid the growing importance of drones in today’s warfare. Dutch F-35 fighter jets were sent to Poland when it faced Russian drone incursions into its airspace.

 “In the end, we cannot spend millions of euros, or dollars, on missiles to take out the drones, which are only costing a couple of thousand dollars,” NATO’s Rutte added. “We need the drone wall.”