(MENAFN) UK Defense Minister John Healey has cautioned that Europe is entering a “new era of threat" as "Russian aggression is growing, (and) the war in Ukraine continues to rage."

Addressing his counterparts from the E5 group—France, Germany, Italy, and Poland—Healey stated in Berlin that “the threats against our nations and against Europe have only increased with reckless drone incursions into Poland, Russian jets flying over Estonia, and NATO nations consulting through Article Four, not once, but twice.”

He emphasized that the E5 coalition is now “more important… than it was a year ago,” adding that member countries would “continue to strengthen the E5 in the year ahead.”

The UK, Healey affirmed, “takes the defense of Europe extremely seriously,” committing to measures both via NATO and through bilateral deployments alongside E5 partners.

Healey also confirmed the rollout of new counter-drone deployments in response to recent attacks, noting that specialists have already been dispatched to Denmark and Belgium, while members of 12 Regiment are currently operating in Finland.

The 12 Regiment is a UK Army air-defense unit with expertise in detecting and neutralizing drones.

Recent months have seen a sharp rise in sightings of unidentified drones over the airspace of at least ten European nations, including Lithuania, Latvia, Estonia, and Germany, intensifying concerns about broader NATO and EU air-defense weaknesses.

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