Space Travel News
UAV NEWS
EU eyes building 'drone wall': question is, what is it?
EU eyes building 'drone wall': question is, what is it?
By Max DELANY
Copenhagen (AFP) Oct 2, 2025

European Union leaders are discussing setting up a "drone wall" of defences after high-profile air incursions by Russia.

But the plan appears to mean different things to different countries, and not everyone seems entirely convinced.

Here's where we stand:

- Eastern shield? -

The first call for the project came last month from EU chief Ursula von der Leyen in the hours after a swarm of Russian drones breached Poland's airspace.

While details were scant, the initial plan appeared clearly focused on helping to shore up the EU's eastern frontier from the threat from Moscow.

Baltic states which feel themselves most directly in Moscow's firing line have already been pressing to bolster anti-drone defences.

"It is basically an anti-drone system that is able to do swift detection, interception and, of course, if necessary, neutralisation," European Commission chief Ursula von der Leyen said.

- Danish lesson -

Interest in the project broadened after a string of mystery drone fights over Denmark shuttered airports.

Those incidents illustrated Europe's vulnerabilities to drones even far from the bloc's eastern borders.

Denmark joined a meeting of defence ministers last week for a first round of talks on the plan.

Those wary of the project said that calling it a drone "wall" gave the impression it was only focused on the eastern flank.

"I don't really care about the name, as long as it works," said Denmark's Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen.

She said the discussion was more focused on constructing a broader "ecosystem" that could also help counter threats coming from other areas.

"Of course, it has to focus on the eastern flank, because the eastern flank is closest to Russia. But at the same time, we have this, I think general approach," she said.

- Ukraine model -

The EU has said it wants to work with Ukraine, which has developed deep expertise in tackling Russian drones after almost four years of war.

"We are ready to share this experience with our partners," Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelensky said Thursday.

Ukraine has developed a wide network of sensors, and low-cost ways to take down Russian drones in a technological race with Moscow to try to outwit its enemy.

"Technology is changing so rapidly that we cannot have one idea and believe that that will solve all our problems," Frederiksen said.

Officials caution that despite the grand ambitions voiced by Brussels, there are likely to be no silver bullets that could protect the continent entirely.

"I'm sometimes wary of terms that are a bit too hasty: are there iron domes that exist for Europeans or drone walls?" said French President Emmanuel Macron.

"Things are more sophisticated, more complex in reality."

- Who pays? -

As ever at the EU, the question of who pays is a big one.

Financial powerhouses like Germany, which are currently looking to build up their own forces, are unwilling to foot the bill for others.

The EU has recently come up with a 150-billion-euro loan scheme that has been predominantly snapped up by countries in the east.

But some in the region say that given they are essentially shielding the rest of Europe from Russia that the effort should be a common one.

"There needs some kind of common procurement, maybe common instruments for sharing the burden with the Eastern border," Estonian Prime Minister Kristen Michal told AFP.

So far there is no concrete estimate for how much the project would cost, but the EU's defence commissioner Andrius Kubilius it should be "several billion euros, not hundreds of billions".

- Why EU? -

Another question being asked is why the EU should take the lead.

The 27-nation bloc has stepped up its role in trying to boost defences, but there are serious doubts about whether it is best placed to manage such a project.

Western military alliance NATO has more typically been the forum for such discussions and it remains in charge of fending off Russia.

But given doubts over US commitment to Europe under President Donald Trump, the EU has been assuming a bigger role.

- What next? -

After a round of discussions by EU leaders in Copenhagen this week, leaders gave the green light to carry on honing the plan.

The ball is now back in the court of von der Leyen's European Commission.

Brussels has been asked to do more homework and come back with a concrete proposal ahead of another EU leaders' meeting in Brussels in three weeks.

"That will be decision time," European Council chief Antonio Costa said.

Related Links
UAV News - Suppliers and Technology

Subscribe Free To Our Daily Newsletters
Tweet

RELATED CONTENT
The following news reports may link to other Space Media Network websites.
UAV NEWS
Drones spotted over Danish military bases, other European nations
Washington DC (UPI) Sep 27, 2025
Denmark on Saturday reported more suspicious drones flying above its largest military base, the second time its airspace was violated this week after another group of drones grounded commercial flights days ago. Finland, Germany and Lithuania on Saturday also reported sighting drones in their airspace, which follows reports from other NATO nations, including Estonia, Poland and Romania, that reported airspace violations. In the latest incident, the BBC reported drones were observed above ... read more

UAV NEWS
UAV NEWS
Wind driven rovers show promise for low cost Mars missions

NASA's ESCAPADE craft returns to Florida for fall mission to Mars

Mars polar vortex traps cold and builds seasonal ozone layer

Predicting Martian aurora to safeguard future explorers

UAV NEWS
NASA seeks student solutions for lunar lander life support technologies

Building a Lunar Network: Johnson Tests Wireless Technologies for the Moon

NASA says on track to send astronauts around the Moon in 2026

NASA Prepares Artemis II Rocket with Crew Upgrades for Lunar Flight

UAV NEWS
NASA Study: Celestial 'Accident' Sheds Light on Jupiter, Saturn Riddle

Methane gas revealed on dwarf planet Makemake by JWST observations

Fresh twist to mystery of Jupiter's core

Jupiter birth dated through ancient molten rock droplets in meteorites

UAV NEWS
The first animals on Earth may have been sea sponges, study suggests

NASA's Tally of Planets Outside Our Solar System Reaches 6,000

Exoplanets unlikely to host global oceans

Molecular 'fossils' offer microscopic clues to the origins of life - but they take care to interpret

UAV NEWS
Beyond Gravity wins order to build robotic thruster mechanisms for HummingSat satellites

Long March 2D reaches 100th mission milestone with dual satellite launch

German military satellites to fly on Ariane 6 under new Arianespace contract

Northrop Grumman Hypersonic Navigation System Exceeds Rocket Test Milestones

UAV NEWS
Constellations of Power: Smart Dragon-3 and the Geopolitics of China's Space Strategy

China advances lunar program with Long March 10 ignition test

Chinese astronauts expand science research on orbiting space station

China planning for a trillion-dollar deep space economy by 2040

UAV NEWS
Asteroid strike confirmed as cause of Silverpit Crater in North Sea

Invisible asteroids near Venus may pose long-term danger to Earth

Water once persisted on Ryugu parent asteroid long after formation

Western researchers support international collaboration for planetary defence

Subscribe Free To Our Daily Newsletters




The content herein, unless otherwise known to be public domain, are Copyright 1995-2024 - Space Media Network. All websites are published in Australia and are solely subject to Australian law and governed by Fair Use principals for news reporting and research purposes. AFP, UPI and IANS news wire stories are copyright Agence France-Presse, United Press International and Indo-Asia News Service. ESA news reports are copyright European Space Agency. All NASA sourced material is public domain. Additional copyrights may apply in whole or part to other bona fide parties. All articles labeled "by Staff Writers" include reports supplied to Space Media Network by industry news wires, PR agencies, corporate press officers and the like. Such articles are individually curated and edited by Space Media Network staff on the basis of the report's information value to our industry and professional readership. Advertising does not imply endorsement, agreement or approval of any opinions, statements or information provided by Space Media Network on any Web page published or hosted by Space Media Network. General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) Statement Our advertisers use various cookies and the like to deliver the best ad banner available at one time. All network advertising suppliers have GDPR policies (Legitimate Interest) that conform with EU regulations for data collection. By using our websites you consent to cookie based advertising. If you do not agree with this then you must stop using the websites from May 25, 2018. Privacy Statement. Additional information can be found here at About Us.