How to stop Russian provocations in Europe: What Must Be Done

Russia is tearing NATO apart without firing a single decisive strike. Russian drones show up in Denmark, Norway, and the Netherlands. MiGs buzz through Estonia’s airspace. Russian planes hover over a Polish drilling rig. These are not accidents. This is not “the wind.” This is hybrid warfare — nobody necessarily fires full salvos, yet everyone’s nerves sit on a razor. It’s a playground of scares. And Moscow is rocking that playground on purpose. The question now is how to stop Russian provocations before they escalate even further into open confrontation.

Drones don’t appear out of nowhere. Either they come in from afar through the air — a route tracked by NATO air defenses — or someone launches them locally via sabotage groups. Yet public information stays thin. Although NATO has the data. Personally, I think the launches originated from Russian ships in the Baltic Sea.

The Logic of Hybrid Warfare

This is classic hybrid warfare in action: fear, confusion about what’s happening, uncertainty about the source of the threat, social tension, and a distraction from other events. The result: priorities shift, and current processes get derailed in order to:

1. Build an image of Russia as an all-powerful military, technical, and political adversary in Europe. That image discourages Europeans from “making an enemy” — that is, from preparing for a real, costly confrontation.

2. Divert attention from the situation in Ukraine. Redirect financial and military priorities to defending Europe rather than directly supporting Ukraine. Strengthening NATO air defenses to cope with large numbers of this kind of drone would demand enormous resources.

3. Probe so-called “red lines.” Moscow tests how far it can go without provoking unacceptable consequences. Afterwards, those red lines may shift.

Why the Provocations Work

Kremlin strategy aims to show NATO not as a genuine collective but as a club of interests. In other words: “We won’t save you.” The message they push is that the Alliance is weak, confused, and indecisive — while Russia presents itself as a “strong hand,” a new axis of power and order.

So expect this behavior to continue. It works. Nobody slaps them back. Remember Turkey shooting down a Russian Su-24 in 2015 after it violated Turkish airspace — what happened then? A lot of huffing and finger-wagging, some stern words, and then everybody went on. And that was a NATO member.

The Only Way to Stop Russian Provocations

Shoot down one damned plane. Just one.
And you will see the provocations dry up.
There will be no World War III. There will be no ballistic missiles over Paris or London. Instead, Russian propagandists will grind their teeth and issue more bluster about their precious nuclear stick — which they themselves are terrified to use.

No, It Won’t Trigger World War III

How many times have they threatened nuclear strikes if the West interferes in our war? And yet we fight with German tanks, American aircraft, French howitzers, and British rockets. The threats remain words only.

The challenge is to stop Russian provocations and show resolve, not weakness. Believe me: shooting down a single Russian aircraft will not trigger a bigger war. The Russians will panic as always, and, most importantly, they will stop pushing further. Show some backbone and strength at last!
Shoot down one damned plane!