The prime minister of Poland has warned that Russia is plotting “air terror” against the West, following the discovery of incendiary devices on cargo planes across Europe.
“All I can say – and I will not go into details, but I can confirm the validity of these fears – is that Russia has been planning acts of air terror, and not only against Poland, but against airlines all over the world,” Donald Tusk told reporters on Wednesday.
He spoke as Germany’s government agreed proposals to allow its army to shoot down suspicious drones flying over its military and industrial sites.
While Mr Tusk refused to give further details on the “air terror” incidents, he may have been referring to a suspected Russian plot to sabotage DHL cargo planes last year.
Over the course of three days in July, parcels containing incendiary devices caught fire on DHL jets in Birmingham, in the east German city of Leipzig and in Warsaw.
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The devices contained magnesium, which is difficult to extinguish, with security agencies warning that the planes would have crashed had the plot not been discovered.
Thomas Haldenwang, Germany’s domestic intelligence chief, blamed Russia for planting the devices.
Last November, a DHL plane crash-landed on its approach to Vilnius airport in Lithuania from Leipzig in Germany, killing one person, in circumstances that were unclear. German officials at the time said it was either an accident or an act of sabotage.
Western intelligence agencies said Russia had carried out a string of covert sabotage attacks on Europe, such as the recent damage to critical undersea cables in the Baltic Sea.
On Wednesday, the German government approved plans to change the rules of engagement for its army, the Bundeswehr, allowing soldiers to shoot down illegal drones.
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The amendment was drawn up partly in response to suspicious drone sightings over the Ramstein military base in Germany, at sites belonging to German arms firm Rheinmetall, and areas hosting Ukrainian soldiers for training.
Currently, Bundeswehr troops may only force suspected hostile drones to land, chase them off, or fire warning shots at them. The rules are said to be insufficient to deal with new drone technology used by hostile states such as Russia.
The new rules require approval from the German parliament, where the coalition government of Olaf Scholz, the chancellor, no longer holds a majority.
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