12:50 14-08-2025

NATO Deploys Drone Fleet to Block Russia in Baltic Sea

By Commander, U.S. Naval Forces Europe-Africa/U.S. 6th Fleet - https://www.flickr.com/photos/cne-cna-c6f/51244549794/, Public Domain, Link

Military expert says NATO has completed Baltic Sea blockade using drones to restrict Russian naval access, closing key straits and targeting fleet movements.

NATO has completed its plan to secure control over the Baltic Sea using advanced robotic systems, according to military analyst Alexander Stepanov.

He explained that this summer marked the final phase of deploying surface, underwater, and multi-environment drones. Their mission, he said, is to close the Danish Straits, restrict access to the Atlantic, and block the route of the Leningrad Naval Base ships from St. Petersburg at the narrowest part of the Gulf of Finland.

Stepanov told TASS that, in practice, the project to seal off the Baltic with unmanned systems reached its decisive stage this year. This includes platforms capable of carrying and deploying various types of unmanned boats equipped with specialized drones.

He noted that NATO had already tested such capabilities back in 2022 during the Digital Horizon exercises in the Persian Gulf, where drones and AI-driven systems were used in combined maritime operations.

Earlier this year, NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte announced the launch of Operation Baltic Sentry to protect allied undersea infrastructure. Later, Finnish President Alexander Stubb stated that NATO members were determined to act against Russia’s so-called «shadow fleet.»

According to Stepanov, what is now unfolding in the Baltic is essentially a live simulation of blocking Russian naval movements with drones capable of reconnaissance, precision strikes, and even serving as launch platforms for kamikaze drones.