Mysterious drones over NATO base 'came to spy' on fighter jets

Unauthorised drones spotted above a sensitive Belgian airbase over consecutive nights were there "to spy" on fighter jets and ammunition, the country's defence minister has said. The sightings over the major Kleine Brogel base were the latest in a series of airspace violations across NATO involving drones in recent months.

The base in northern Belgium is one of the country's biggest and is home to F-16 fighter jets and American nuclear weapons. Defence minister Theo Francken expressed concerns that the flights could be part of a spying operation. However, he stopped short of accusing Russia of being responsible, despite many nations pointing the finger at Moscow over recent incursions.

Speaking to Belgian public broadcaster RTBF, Mr Francken said: "They [the drones] come to spy, to see where the F-16s are, where the ammunition are, and other highly strategic information."

He added: "The Russians are trying to do this in all European countries.

"Is it the Russians now? I can't say that, but the motives are clear and the ways of doing things like this are also very clear."

On Saturday morning, Mr Francken said on X that "several drones" had been spotted over Kleine Brogel the night before.

Drones were then seen again the following night, he confirmed, saying there had been three reports.

The minister said a drone gun jammer was fired but was ineffective, with a police helicopter and vehicles pursuing a UAV only to lose contact after a few kilometres.

Local media reported that drones were again spotted for the third consecutive night on Sunday.

Speaking to RTBF on Monday, Mr Francken said the incidents "resemble a spy operation".

He said he had a "few ideas" but didn't want to speculate further with an investigation underway.

The minister said the first incident involved small drones to "test radio frequencies", while on Saturday and Sunday there were "large drones for observation and destabilisation".

Mr Francken has ruled out the flights being a prank, pointing towards the operators changing and having their own frequencies.

"An amateur doesn't know how to do that," he said.

Kleine Brogel is used by NATO forces and, according to its website, the base aims to "fundamentally contribute" to the alliance's nuclear deterrence.

Last month, several drones were spotted above another Belgian military base near the German border. The operators were not identified.

Russia has been blamed for a number of airspace violations, notably in Estonia and Poland, in recent months.

However, the perpetrators of a series of mysterious drone flights in Denmark and Germany have been harder to pin down.

On Friday evening, Berlin's Brandenburg airport suspended flights for almost two hours after a drone sighting. It was not clear who was responsible.