Top political official urges ‘immediate steps’ to de-escalate tensions over Russia-Ukraine war
By Anjali Sharma
UNITED NATIONS – UN top official Miroslav Jenča on Monday held an emergency session in New York and briefed the members of the Security Council after planes from the North Atlantic Treaty Organization intercepted 3 Russia jets in Estonian airspace last Friday, according to the Estonian Government.
Mr. Jenča referred to the intensifying attacks by Russia on Ukraine and reported casualties inside Russia, “the world simply cannot afford such danger to spiral out of control.”
Council held an emergency meeting in response to the Russian Federation’s violation of Estonian airspace.
They met under its agenda item on “Threats to International Peace and Security”, followed the receipt of a letter from Estonia informed the UNSC that on 19 September, three Russian Federation MiG-31 fighters violated Estonian air space.
Miroslav Jenča, Assistant Secretary-General for Europe, Central Asia and the Americas in the Departments of Political and Peace building Affairs and Peace Operations briefed the Council members.
Many Foreign Ministers took the podium.
According to the Estonian Ministry of Defence, the incursion took place between 9:58 a.m. and 10:11 a.m. in the area of Vaindloo a small island located in the Gulf of Finland in the Baltic Sea,” said Miroslav Jenča said.
He said that the ministry reported, that the Russian Federation’s jets entered Estonian airspace without permission, had their transponders switched off and did not have flight plans “potentially endangering other aircraft”.
Estonia has pointed to four violations of its airspace by the Russian Federation in 2025 and has requested consultations with its North Atlantic Treaty Organization allies.
“This latest development follows reported violations by Russian drones of Polish and Romanian airspace,” he noted.
He emphasized “This series of recent incidents further underscore the already-high tensions that endanger European security as the war continues to rage in Ukraine.”
Lars Løkke Rasmussen, Minister for Foreign Affairs of Denmark said “These are reckless and dangerous escalations and provocations by the Russian Federation”.
He added that “Russia clearly feels it can act with impunity”, he said that Denmark and its allies will not be provoked.
He said “We have seen this playbook before the invasion of Georgia, the annexation of Crimea, the invasion of the Donbas, the full-scale invasion of Ukraine. Russia’s neighbours not unreasonably fear they could be the next.”
“We tell the Russian Federation today: step back,” he stressed.
Giorgos Gerapetritis, Minister for Foreign Affairs of Greece said “The latest incident involving the incursion of Estonian airspace by three armed Russian fighter jets cannot be viewed in isolation”.
“Reckless acts of this kind are not new, but their successive recurrence indicates they are not mere coincidences,” he observed, adding: “As the saying goes — once is an accident, twice is a coincidence, three is a pattern.”
“We call on Russia to cease these unlawful acts immediately and respect its obligations under international law,” he said.
“Our neighbours have now imagined that Russia is at fault for an incursion into Estonian airspace,” said the representative of the Russian Federation. He continued: “As always, there is no proof except the Russophobic hysteria coming from Tallinn, which our Estonian colleague will wax lyrical about a little bit later.”
“As for the facts,” he said, “the facts prove that, on the 19th of September, three Russian MiG-31 fighter jets conducted a planned flight from Karelia to an airbase in Kaliningrad oblast, carried out in strict accordance with international airspace-use rules.”
They “did not stray from the agreed route, nor did they cross into Estonian airspace”, he said.
He stated that their trajectory was “over the neutral waters of the Baltic Sea, over three kilometres from the island of Vaindloo”.
Margus Tsahkna, Minister for Foreign Affairs of Estonia said here you can also see the radar screenshot, where Russia’s fighter jets entered, where they were and how they went out,” presented the Council with radar screenshots and photographs of combat-ready MiG-31 fighter jets.
“They were warned,” he added.
He stated that there was “very clear communication on all channels” that was met with “no response”.
He underscored that the “violation is crystal clear, and Russia is lying again — as it has lied before several times”.
“We remember,” he stressed, Moscow’s 2008 occupation of Georgia, 2014 incursion into Crimea and 2022 aggression against Ukraine, and he said to the Russian Federation: “So please don’t lie again — hard evidence is here.”
Radosław Sikorski the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Foreign Affairs of Poland said “We know you don’t care for international law and you are incapable of living in peace with your neighbours. Your insane nationalism contains a lust for domination that will not cease until you realize that the age of empires is over, and that your empire will not be rebuilt.”
He said that Poland, therefore, has “only one request” to the Russian Federation’s Government “If another missile or aircraft enters our airspace without permission either deliberately or by mistake and gets shot down and the wreckage falls on NATO territory, please don’t come here to whine about it.”
He concluded: “You have been warned.”
Romanian delegation stressed that lack of International reaction may encourage future provocations.
Oana-Silvia Țoiu, Minister for Foreign Affairs of Romania stressed that “Russia has repeatedly violated the sovereign airspace of European countries.”
“Now it is Estonia, last week it was Romania, before that Poland,” she observed.
She underscored “Even a perceived lack of reaction from the international community especially this Council might encourage future provocations.”
Oana-Silvia Țoiu urged the international community to reject Moscow’s unjustified, unprovoked aggression against Ukraine.
She concluded: “Action is of essence — now.”
