NATO fighter jets shot down a drone that entered Latvian airspace on Friday, according to Latvia’s Defence Ministry, amid growing concern over drone incursions across Europe.

The ministry said the unmanned aerial vehicle entered Latvia as a result of what it described as Russian electronic warfare. It later confirmed that the threat had been neutralised.

“NATO fighter jets have successfully shot down a foreign unmanned aerial vehicle that had entered Latvia as a result of Russian electromagnetic warfare,” the ministry said in a post on X.

Latvia, a NATO and European Union member with a population of about 1.9 million, shares a border with Russia and has experienced several drone-related incidents amid the ongoing Russia-Ukraine war.

The latest incident came as neighbouring Finland introduced temporary restrictions on aviation and maritime activities in the eastern Gulf of Finland as a precautionary measure. Its defence forces said the move was intended to protect the public and maintain authorities’ ability to respond to potential drone threats.

Meanwhile, Russia’s Leningrad region reported a separate wave of drone attacks. Regional Governor Aleksandr Drozdenko said Russian air defences had intercepted 54 Ukrainian drones and that a fire broke out at the Baltic Sea port of Ust-Luga.

The Baltic region has seen increased military vigilance over unauthorised drone activity. On Monday, French fighter jets participating in NATO’s Baltic Air Policing mission shot down a drone over Latvia, marking the first such interception by the alliance’s rapid-reaction force in the country.

Elsewhere in Europe, German authorities recently discovered an explosives-laden drone at Leipzig Airport, while operations at Hanover Airport were temporarily disrupted after another drone entered restricted airspace.