Belgium’s National Security Council will hold an emergency meeting on Thursday following drone sightings of airports for travelers and heightened security measures.
Arrivals and departures were halted for hours on Tuesday night at Belgium’s busiest airport, Brussels, leading to the cancellation of many flights. The skies were also closed at Liège Airport, an important hub for cargo transport, leading to further cancellations, delays and discrepancies.
Meanwhile, the mayor of the Flemish city reported that police and army officers found four drones at the nearby Schaffen Military Airbase on Tuesday.
Before the latest sightings, the Belgian authorities were already investigating the Mysterious Drione Sightings of several military bases, which are close to the Kleine border, which are close to the Belgian Fighter Jets and widely reported by the Belgian weapons reported by the nuclear weapons in Belgium.
The drone strikes in Belgium are just the latest, following an increase in incursions into European airspace since mid-September. In recent weeks, drones have been spotted in the Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Germany, Poland, Norway and Spain.
Lithuania targeted its two largest airports last month after helium balloons, suspected of carrying contraband cigarettes, were seized. The Prime Minister of Lithuania later called the interventions a “hybrid attack” in an echo of the term used to describe efforts to stop Moscow. In September, three Russian military jets made incursions into the Airspace of Estonia, while Romania scrambled two skies to attack Russia in neighboring Ukraine.
The Minister of Defense of Belgium, Theo Francene, told a parliamentary committee on Wednesday of the incidents in Belgium that coordinates the dealing with the cessation of formation drones. “It’s consistent with the hybrid methods seen in other countries. It’s not just someone flying a drone at a military site or airport it’s organized in a very structured way.”
The Belgian government did not say who it thought was responsible for the drones, but one source did told the Belga News Agency that the security services have “little doubt” that a state actor is behind the recent sightings, “probably Russia”. The point was reportedly made at a meeting to prepare the National Security Council on Thursday, reported Le Soir.
Tensions have increased between Belgium and Russia in recent weeks, as Brussels faces pressure from EU partners to use frozen Russian assets to help Ukraine.
Last week, the former President of Russia Dmitry Medvedev, known for his Bombastic Social Media Posts, called Francen in a Media Decnece Talk given a few days ago. Francen, a plain-spoken Nationalist, said he was not worried about Russia launching a nuclear attack on Brussels because NATO would go “.
The spat came after Belgium frustrated its EU allies by blocking a plan to loan Ukraine €140bn based on frozen Russian assets. Talks continue to reach an agreement on the plan by the end of the year.
In his meeting with the MPS, Francen said that Belgium does not intend to invoke Article 4, which allows members of the transatlantic alliance to seek to correct an impression he gave the day before.
Belgium’s interior minister, Bernard Quentin, said the repetition of drone incidents “directly affects the security of our country”.
He called a meeting of the National Security Council, composed of the Prime Minister, Bart de Werver, his most senior ministers, as well as police and security superies when relevant. “We must act in a calm, serious and coordinated manner,” wrote Quentin of X.
Brussels Airport warned passengers on Wednesday afternoon that disruptions to their journeys remain possible. A spokesman said 95 flights were cancelled, including more than half after the airport opened on Wednesday because several planes were in the wrong place.
About 400 to 500 people spent the night at Brussels Airport due to the damage, the spokesman said.