MOSCOW, April 13. /TASS/. The Baltic states and Finland are allowing Ukraine to use their airspace for drone strikes against Russia, which points to direct involvement of the NATO countries and will not go unpunished, Nikolay Patrushev, presidential aide and Maritime Board head, said in an interview with Rossiyskaya Gazeta.
"I believe that neighboring countries are also complicit in these crimes, even if Ukrainian drones are launched from the decks of ships in the Baltic Sea," he said, commenting on the attacks on Baltic harbors in Ust-Luga and Primorsk.
"The provision of airspace by the Baltic states and Finland for the passage of combat UAVs means direct participation of the NATO member states in attacks on Russian territory and infrastructure. With all the conclusions and consequences."
He said that the distance from the northern borders of Ukraine to the Leningrad Region stands at over 1,400 km.
"Such a route requires careful study and at least the consent of the leadership of the countries over which it passes. Residents of Estonia, by the way, receive SMS alerts and flyers, pre-printed in a printing house, about possible appearance of drones in the sky. Finland, on whose territory fallen Ukrainian drones are found, has openly said it will not demand that Ukraine cease strikes on the Leningrad Region. What's there to comment on?" Patrushev said.