Russia Denies Role In Drone Attacks That Shut Down Denmark, Norway Airports

by Stefan J. Bos, Worthy News Europe Bureau Chief

MOSCOW/BUDAPEST (Worthy News) – Russia on Tuesday denied involvement in drones that violated the airspace of Nordic nations Denmark and Norway, forcing major airports to close and stranding tens of thousands of passengers.

Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen said the country had been subjected to the “most serious attack on Danish critical infrastructure to date” after the drone incursion shut Copenhagen Airport for several hours late Monday. She said authorities were still investigating who was behind the suspected hybrid attack, but stressed she could not rule out Russia.

The Kremlin’s spokesperson, Dmitry Peskov, accused Frederiksen of making “unfounded accusations.”

Danish police said two or three large drones seen near Copenhagen Airport — also the main hub for southern Sweden — appeared to have been flown by a “capable operator” intent on showing off technical skills. The drones reportedly approached from multiple directions, switched their lights on and off, and disappeared after circling for several hours.

The closure at Copenhagen forced the diversion of at least 31 flights and disrupted travel for an estimated 20,000 passengers, aviation authorities said. Oslo Airport, Norway’s main aviation hub, was also forced to close for about three hours after drones were spotted overhead.

NORWEGIAN CONCERNS

Norwegian Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Støre linked the incident to broader regional threats, noting that Russia had violated Norwegian airspace three times this year.

“We cannot determine whether this was done intentionally or due to navigation errors. Regardless of the cause, this is not acceptable,” he said in a statement.

He described the Norwegian breaches as “smaller in scope” than similar incidents in Estonia, Poland, and Romania, but added that they were still viewed “very seriously” after more than a decade without such airspace violations.

The European Union’s executive European Commission expressed solidarity, with its president, Ursula von der Leyen, saying these developments fit a “pattern of ongoing challenges at our borders.”

NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte said it was too early to assign blame but stressed the military alliance would “guard its airspace and respond as needed.”

REPORTED ARRESTS

Separately, Norwegian authorities detained a Singaporean couple in their 50s and 60s for flying a drone in central Oslo on Monday night.

Officials said the case appeared unrelated to the airport sightings, but the drone was seized for examination.

No suspects have been identified in the incidents at Copenhagen or Oslo airports. However, investigators are probing whether the drones could have been launched from ships in the nearby Baltic Sea, where Russian “shadow fleet” oil tankers are active.

Jacob Kaarsbo, a former chief analyst at Denmark’s defense intelligence service, said in published remarks that the “launch from one of those vessels in the Baltic was the most likely option,” noting similar cases in German waters.

The term “shadow fleet” refers to hundreds of older, often poorly insured or disguised tankers used by Russia and its partners to transport sanctioned oil through international waters.

Western officials say these ships operate with obscured ownership and irregular tracking to avoid sanctions monitoring, making them difficult to control or trace.

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