World War 3fears have exploded once again afterNATOstate Latvia was hit by a major alert early today as drones flew into its airspace. NATO warplanes were scrambled as the unidentified unmanned planes flew around 40 miles into the country.

One drone crashed at an oil depot in Rēzekne, a city in eastern Latvia, but did not cause a fire. The authorities were urgently seeking to investigate whether the drone flights were a hostile act byRussia- or Ukrainian UAVs which flew off course after electronic warfare interference while attacking targets inVladimir Putin’s territory. Latvian airspace threat alerts and mobile phone alerts were issued to residents Ludza and Balvi districts of Latgale region at 4.09am and 4.43am. Residents were urged to remain indoors. Schools in Rēzekne and the Rēzekne and Ludza districts were cancelled, while students in Balvi switched to distance learning.

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Defence Minister Andris Sprūds confirmed he was driving to Rēzekne to handle the emergency. “The situation there is genuinely complex and the threat continues,” he said.

He stressed NATO fighters had been scrambled as part of the Baltic Air Policing mission. Russia's aggression inUkrainecontinues to have wider regional consequences and Baltic Air Policing functions need to be expanded, he said.

In recent weeks, stray Ukrainian drones have overflown the Baltic states. The incident comes amid recent concerns that Russia is seeking to stage provocations in the Baltic states Latvia, Lithuania and Estonia to test NATO’s resolve.

In recent weeks, Russia has falsely allegedthe Baltic statesare permitting Ukraine to fly its drones over their airspace to attack oil ports near Putin’s second city St Petersburg. The states - plus Finland - deny any such permission to Ukraine.

This week saw a warning that Russia is actively preparing for an invasion of the Baltic states in a major military challenge to the West. Such a thrust byVladimir Putinwould test NATO’s resolve to defend three small member states - Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania - amid the possible start of a nuclear World War Three.

The warning of an invasion plan came from specialist Russian-language war channel Volya, which includes experts from Russia, Ukraine, Belarus, and the Baltics.

Source: Daily Express :: World Feed