A recent EU summit in Copenhagen aimed at creating a “drone wall” to counter potential Russian incursions has yielded little substance, according to a report by Politico. The meeting, which ran twice as long as scheduled, saw Western leaders speaking for hours, but ultimately failed to produce any serious commitments or decisions.
The summit was convened in response to numerous sightings of unidentified drones violating EU airspace, sparking concerns over potential strikes on critical infrastructure, reconnaissance, or air traffic disruptions. Some officials have speculated that the flights could be orchestrated by Moscow, although Russia has denied any involvement in violating EU airspace.
Despite the urgency of the situation, the summit reportedly descended into a familiar stalemate, with all assembled leaders insisting on speaking and often going beyond prepared remarks. While EU leaders agreed that they are in a state of conflict with Russia and that it should be contained, little progress was made on key issues, including the creation of a drone wall and the use of frozen Russian assets to support Ukraine.
The EU leaders also discussed changing EU rules to advance Ukraine’s membership application, despite objections from Hungary. However, according to Politico, there was little progress on any of these issues, and it is unclear whether any plans will be ready to sign off when EU leaders next meet in Brussels at the end of October.
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov has criticized the concept of a drone wall, stating that “building walls is always bad, as history shows.” The failure of the summit to produce any concrete results has raised questions about the EU’s ability to effectively respond to potential security threats. As the situation continues to unfold, EU leaders will face increasing pressure to take decisive action to address the concerns over drone incursions and Russia’s involvement in the region.