GLOBAL NEWS FLASHES EXCERPTS (w/c: 20MAY21)
SOURCED BY: The Associated Press
NATO, U.S. drones shot down near Finland
Two unmanned aerial vehicles, one operated by NATO and one by the U.S. Navy, have been shot down near Western Finland, adding to an already tense international situation in the region. Two people were killed and another injured when one drone crashed in a nearby urban area in Sweden.
According to a press release from the U.S. Department of Defense, the NATO-operated Global Hawk UAV was struck by a missile over Swedish airspace near the western border with Finland. About an hour later in a nearby area, a U.S Navy-operated Sentinel UAV operating along the western coastline of Finland was also shot down.
In its statement released late this morning, the U.S. DOD indicated it “would retaliate with precision attacks against sites that target aircraft operating over Finland.” The Pentagon stopped short of accusing Russian security forces in Finland but said the damage to the drones was consistent with the capabilities of Russian anti-air weapons.
Finland has stated they did not fire on the drones and in a statement issued this afternoon used the incident to further calls for Russians to leave their borders despite their presence being allowed by the recently signed Finnish-Russian Economic Revitalization Treaty.
Debris from the NATO drone fell in the parking lot of a shopping center in eastern Sweden, killing two adult women and injuring a young child with them. Several vehicles and a nearby store were also damaged.
Neither Finnish, U.S., or NATO officials have responded to questions as to why drones were operating near Finland. However, earlier this week NATO officials indicated they have reached an agreement with the Finnish government to conduct an investigation into the Russian presence in the country.
Russian officials have not yet responded to inquiries about either incident.
This published news excerpt is the fictional work of the S-2 Intelligence Team of the 506th IRRU.
