Overview

• A Russian Su-35 fighter jet breached Estonian airspace on May 13 near Juminda Peninsula, remaining for less than 60 seconds without a flight plan or transponder signal.
• Portuguese F-16 jets, stationed in Estonia as part of NATO’s Baltic air policing, conducted a reconnaissance flight in response to the violation.
• The Estonian Foreign Ministry summoned Russia’s chargé d’affaires and issued a formal diplomatic protest over the incident.
• The airspace breach follows Estonia’s recent detention of a Russian shadow-fleet tanker suspected of evading sanctions, highlighting ongoing maritime tensions.
• This marks the first confirmed Russian airspace violation of 2025, amid heightened NATO security measures in the Baltic region since the Ukraine conflict began.