Today, on 21 September 2025, in solidarity with Estonia, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Latvia summoned the Chargé d’Affaires of the Russian Embassy in Latvia to deliver them a note and lodge a categorical protest concerning incursion by the Russian fighter aircraft into the airspace of Estonia on 19 September.
On 19 September, three MIG-31 military aircraft of the Russian Air Force entered Estonian airspace over the Gulf of Finland in the vicinity of Vaindloo Island without warning and permission, and remained there for a nearly 12 minutes. The aircraft did not have a flight plan, they flew with their transponders turned off, and did not maintain radio communication with Estonian air traffic control during the incursion.
Russia’s irresponsible behaviour is in a gross violation of the 1944 Convention on International Civil Aviation. Not only does it pose a serious threat to civil aviation, but also provokes an escalation of the situation.
In the diplomatic note, the Latvian side also reiterates a demand that Russia end its war of aggression against Ukraine, withdraw its occupational forces from the entire internationally recognized Ukrainian territory, and compensate for all losses suffered by Ukraine as a result of the Russian aggression.