DENMARK ACCUSES RUSSIAN FRIGATE OF FIRING FLARES AT HELICOPTER

Denmark's armed forces said a Russian frigate fired two flares at a Fennec helicopter on Monday, with one flare passing close to the aircraft. The helicopter was carrying out a routine photographic monitoring operation of the frigate, which was in international waters off Gedser, Denmark's southernmost town, in the Baltic Sea. Denmark summoned the Russian ambassador over the incident. Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen called the frigate's action "reckless" and said it was designed to "intimidate and divide". The foreign ministry described the incident as "completely unacceptable".

Foreign Minister Lars Lokke Rasmussen said Russia was "gradually shifting the boundary for what they consider acceptable behaviour" and that this could not be accepted. Defence Minister Jeppe Bruus said the frigate's crew made no attempt to contact the helicopter before firing. Russian ambassador Vladimir Barbin rejected the Danish account, accusing Denmark of "recklessness" and "provocative actions", and said Danish helicopters had carried out "dangerous manoeuvres" near Russian warships before. Barbin said he had raised a similar complaint last year and argued the latest episode showed communication problems lay with Denmark rather than the Russian Navy. Russia said it would "thoroughly investigate" the incident.

The incident came on the same day Nato forces shot down a drone over Lithuania, one of several security incidents reported along the alliance's eastern flank amid Russia's invasion of Ukraine. Tensions between Nato states and Russia have remained heightened in the Baltic region, where Danish and Russian vessels and aircraft operate in close proximity. Denmark's summoning of the Russian ambassador marks a formal diplomatic step in response to the incident. The two governments have given differing accounts of who was responsible for the encounter near Gedser.