INTERNACIONAL
NATO allies clash after Russian jets breach airspace, testing alliance resolve
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EXCLUSIVE: Recent Russian incursions into NATO airspace have sharpened divisions inside the alliance over how to respond, exposing both the strength and the limits of collective defense.
Secretary General Mark Rutte clashed with Estonian Prime Minister Kristen Michal last week after Estonia invoked NATO’s Article 4 clause, which triggers consultations when a member feels its security is threatened.
According to three European officials granted anonymity to speak freely, Rutte argued that repeated invocations risked diluting the treaty’s force. One source said he even raised his voice at Michal, warning that NATO must be cautious about how often it signals alarm.
Rutte argued that if Article 4 were invoked every time Russia violated sovereignty — through drone incursions, fighter jets, cyberattacks and more — it would quickly lose impact, according to the officials.
DENMARK CONSIDERS TRIGGERING NATO ARTICLE 4 AFTER DRONES FLY OVER AIRPORTS
NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte in front of NATO and Ukraine flags (Thomas Peter/Reuters)
A NATO spokesperson confirmed Rutte and Michal spoke Friday and said the secretary general «has supported Estonia throughout the process.»
Rasmus Ruuda, director of the Government Communication Office of Estonia, told Fox News Digital Rutte «expressed support for Estonia and the Prime Minister thanked NATO for its actions.»
«Article 4 is just a signal that we’re taking note of what happened,» said Giedrimas Jeglinskas, a Lithuanian member of parliament and former NATO assistant secretary general. «We can be invoking Article 4 every week, and I think that only weakens us, because we’re unable to truly respond to that aggression that Russia is sort of throwing at us.»
The tension comes after a series of provocative moves by Moscow. Last month, missile-carrying Russian MiG-29s flew into Estonian territory, following an earlier breach of Polish airspace by 19 drones and repeated incursions over Romania. In Poland, jets scrambled to intercept the drones, shooting some of them down. It marked the first time since World War II that Polish armed forces mobilized to engage an airborne threat over their homeland.
The Russian jets in Estonia were eventually escorted out of its territory by Italian F-35s. Estonia’s Article 4 request followed Poland’s own invocation days earlier, prompting another round of consultations in Brussels.
MiG-29 jet fighters perform during a Victory Day parade in Red Square in Moscow on June 24, 2020. (Sefa Karacan/Anadolu Agency via Getty Images)
Since its creation in 1949, Article 4 has been triggered only nine times. NATO’s warning to Russia after the Estonian request was blunt: any further breaches would be met with «all means» of defense. Estonia’s defense minister said his nation was prepared to shoot down Russian planes violating airspace «if there is a need.»
But Jeglinskas said signaling without consequence risks leaving the alliance trapped.
«We’re happy to do Article 4 every other day, but so what? What’s next?» he said. «The real question is what happens when the jets actually enter our airspace.»
The debate cuts to a deeper question: what constitutes a «need» to shoot down Russian jets? How can Russia be deterred without stumbling into direct war?
«The last thing we want is to have NATO get drawn into a war with Russia,» a senior State Department official told Fox News Digital. «God knows how that ends.»
«Almost all wars … they don’t necessarily start with a big bang,» the official went on. «They start with an escalation, and then somebody feels they need to respond to this, and then you just get in a toxic spiral.»
‘PUTIN IS PUSHING THE LIMITS’: EASTERN ALLIES WARN TRUMP NOT TO PULL US TROOPS
The United States has promised to defend «every inch» of NATO while pressing Europe to bear more of its own defense burden. Washington’s mixed signals have only complicated matters.
Trump administration officials long favored reducing the U.S. troop presence in Europe. But President Donald Trump recently delivered one of the starkest warnings to Moscow, declaring that NATO states should shoot Russian aircraft down if they incur on their territory.
Jeglinskas said the statement resonated across the Baltic States. «What was really helpful was that President Trump was very clear,» he said. «That gives us confidence we’re on the right track, and we really appreciate the support.»
Still, allies remain divided on whether to escalate. Some warn that Eastern Europe cannot credibly threaten retaliation without an American security guarantee. Others argue that deterrence depends on showing Russia its incursions carry a cost.
«If we really want to send a proper message of deterrence to Russia, we need to be prepared to use kinetic force,» Jeglinskas said. «That means neutralizing those jets — shooting them down or finding other ways to impose consequences — so Russia actually feels the cost of its incursions. That hasn’t happened yet, and it leaves us vulnerable.»
Estonia’s Prime Minister Kristen Michal led his country in invoking Article 4 after Russian jet incursions. (Piroschka van de Wouw/Reuters)
The airspace disputes now extend beyond fighter jets. European Union members are meeting in Copenhagen this week to discuss shoring up air defenses after a wave of drone sightings. Denmark briefly shut down its airspace following mysterious drone activity, while Lithuania’s Vilnius airport and Norway’s Oslo airport also reported disruptions. Drones have even been spotted over Germany’s northern state of Schleswig-Holstein.
«We are not at war, but we are no longer at peace either. We must do much more for our own security,» German Chancellor Friedrich Merz said in Düsseldorf.
NATO jets scrambled to intercept drones over Poland, but the response underscored a growing mismatch: deploying multi-million dollar fighters to counter small, unmanned aircraft is neither efficient nor sustainable.
RUSSIA SHIFTS FROM TALK TO ACTION, TARGETING NATO HOMELAND AMID FEARS OF GLOBAL WAR
«NATO remains the most crucial element of our security equation,» Jeglinskas said. «It’s the backbone through which our security is viewed. There’s really no doubt about NATO’s political will and its capability to defend its territory, but warfare is changing — and the question now is, has NATO adapted to the new way of war that is seeping through the borders of Ukraine?»
Jeglinskas warned that neither NATO nor the Baltic States have done enough. «The Polish incursion signified that NATO is not fully ready to counter these threats,» he said. «Scrambling jets is a tremendous economic mismatch. If these kinds of attacks become swarms, it’s not sustainable.»
A French Rafale fighter jet is seen after landing following a joint mission with Polish F16s at an air base in Minsk Mazowiecki on September 17, 2025, as part of the Eastern Sentry mission (THIBAUD MORITZ/AFP via Getty Images)
To address mounting threats, NATO last month launched Operation Eastern Sentry, reinforcing its presence on Europe’s eastern flank. Jeglinskas welcomed the move but said gaps remain.
«Jets are very important, but more jets don’t mean we’re more secure from low-altitude drones,» he said. «The question is: do we have sensors that can detect what’s happening from the ground up to a kilometer into our airspace? We don’t see that. It’s like a dead space.»
Jeglinskas called for stronger short- and medium-range radar, as well as layered defenses akin to Israel’s Iron Dome, capable of intercepting drones with both kinetic and electronic means.
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«NATO’s response is commendable,» he said, «but it’s not enough. You need technical know-how, the right capabilities, and systems that are truly integrated if you want to make this work.»
For now, NATO remains caught between signaling resolve and acting on it. As Russia continues to test the alliance’s borders, Jeglinskas and other Eastern European officials warn that credibility is at stake. The next incursion, they argue, may demand more than words.
nato,russia,the european union,conflicts defense,vladimir putin,world,politics
INTERNACIONAL
Tensión Estados Unidos-Colombia: Donald Trump ahora dice que Gustavo Petro es un «matón» y un «mal tipo» que fabrica «muchas drogas»
El presidente de Estados Unidos, Donald Trump, aseguró este miércoles que su homólogo colombiano, Gustavo Petro, es un «matón y un mal tipo» y lo acusó de fabricar «muchas drogas», días después de imputarle ser un «líder del narcotráfico».
«Es un matón y un mal tipo. Es un tipo que fabrica muchas drogas», declaró Trump a los reporteros en el Despacho Oval. «Ha hecho mucho daño a su país. Les está yendo muy mal».
El mandatario estadounidense se refirió al colombiano días después de anunciar el fin de la ayuda financiera a Colombia por su inacción en la lucha contra el narcotráfico y señalar a Petro como un «líder del narcotráfico».
«Tienen fábricas de cocaína. Cultivan todo tipo de porquerías y las drogas malas que entran en Estados Unidos generalmente pasan por México, y más le vale tener cuidado y tomar medidas muy serias contra él y su país», añadió Trump.
El magnate republicano aseguró que lo que Petro le «ha hecho a su país es una trampa mortal».
Estas declaraciones y el anuncio del fin de las ayudas se producen en medio de la escalada de las tensiones entre Bogotá y Washington por la guerra que EE.UU. ha declarado contra el narcotráfico.
Video
Dos muertos tras el ataque de EE.UU. contra otro supuesto barco con drogas.
La presencia de navíos y aeronaves militares estadounidenses en aguas del mar caribe han provocado el rechazo de gobiernos como el colombiano y el venezolana, elevando aún más las tensiones con Trump.
Este miércoles, el Pentágono anunció un nuevo ataque contra una supuesta narcolancha, esta vez en aguas del Pacífico frente a Colombia.
El lunes, Colombia llamó a consultas a su embajador en Washington y denunció una amenaza de invasión por parte de Estados Unidos luego del anuncio de Donald Trump de que retirará la ayuda financiera a Bogotá por «fomentar» la producción de drogas.
El ministro del Interior de Colombia, Armando Benedetti, denunció una «amenaza» de «invasión» de Trump, quien pareció sugerir algún tipo de intervención de Washington contra la producción de droga en el país sudamericano.
Trump detuvo el domingo el apoyo económico a Bogotá por supuestamente «fomentar» el narcotráfico y afirmó que debería «cerrar» los narcocultivos de «inmediato, o Estados Unidos se los cerrará».
La relación entre ambos países, que históricamente fueron aliados, entró en su peor momento con la llegada de Trump a la Casa Blanca mientras en Colombia gobierna el primer presidente izquierdista de su historia. Esa mala tensión creció en el último mes.
El primer episodio ocurrió a fines de septiembre en Nueva York, cuando el presidente Gustavo Petro -que había viajado a Estados Unidos para asistir a la Asamblea General de Naciones Unidas- participó de una manifestación por Gaza que se llevó a cabo en esa ciudad en la que instó a los soldados norteamericanos a desobedecer al líder de la Casa Blanca.
Como consecuencia de esa participación, Washington decidió revocarle el visado de ingreso al país, acusándolo de «actos temerarios e incendiarios» durante la protesta.
Las tensiones se agudizaron por el despliegue militar de Estados Unidos en aguas del Caribe. Petro ha denunciado que los ataques letales contra embarcaciones acusadas de transportar drogas son desproporcionados y constituyen un “asesinato”.
Con una publicación en redes sociales, el presidente estadounidense tildó a su par colombiano de “capo de las drogas” que tiene «bajos índices de aprobación y es muy impopular». Y le advirtió además que “más le vale” frenar operaciones del narcotráfico «o Estados Unidos las cerrará por él, y no lo hará de manera amable».
Petro, quien puede ser tan expresivo en redes sociales como su homólogo estadounidense, rechazó las acusaciones de Trump y defendió su trabajo para combatir el narcotráfico en Colombia, el mayor exportador mundial de cocaína.
“Tratar de impulsar la paz de Colombia no es ser narcotraficante”, escribió Petro. Insinuó que Trump estaba siendo engañado por sus asesores y dijo que Trump estaba siendo “grosero e ignorante con Colombia”.
INTERNACIONAL
Expert warns critical hours slipping away as kidnappers likely to move US missionary in Niger
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A security expert told Fox News Digital the first 48 hours are critical in the search for an American Christian missionary kidnapped in the West African nation of Niger, who may have already been moved between Islamic State-controlled areas where an ISIS offshoot operates.
Bryan Stern, founder of the crisis response group Grey Bull Rescue, said in an exclusive interview with Fox News Digital that in most organized kidnappings, those who seize a hostage are rarely the same people who hold them.
«What happens in most of these cases is whoever took the hostage isn’t who’s holding on to the hostage,» Stern said. «The people who hold hostages generally are a lot smarter, a lot more capable, less disposable… so getting to them as soon as possible does matter in a very demonstrable way.»
Stern said every passing hour reduces the chance of recovery. In many cases, hostages are quickly traded or sold between groups with differing motives — from ransom to propaganda — making it difficult to know what the captors want.
AMERICAN MISSIONARY KIDNAPPED IN NIGER BY SUSPECTED ISLAMIST MILITANTS, SOURCES SAY
This picture taken on Sept. 7, 2023, shows Niger’s presidential palace in Niamey. The building has remained under the control of the military junta since President Mohamed Bazoum was ousted in a 2023 coup. (AFP via Getty Images)
«It’s easy to understand who took somebody, but once people start getting traded around like cards and stuff, it’s hard to then understand what the current holding party wants,» he said.
The groups often operate with their own chain of command and pecking order, each with different goals and levels of influence.
«All those different things play into how you’re gonna get somebody back, and the most dangerous thing to do is send ninjas in and shoot everybody,» Stern said. «That’s the most highest-risk thing that we do because there’s no margin for error.»
I WAS KIDNAPPED BY BOKO HARAM, AND SURVIVED. NO THANKS TO THE WEST’S SILENCE
Niger’s junta leader Gen. Abdourahamane Tchiani salutes during an official ceremony in Niamey, Niger, on Aug. 26, 2023. Tchiani seized power in a July 2023 coup that ousted President Mohamed Bazoum and has ruled the West African nation since. (AFP via Getty Images)
U.S. officials confirmed they are aware of the kidnapping, which took place in Niamey, about 100 yards from Niger’s presidential palace. The missionary, a pilot for the evangelical group Serving in Mission, was reportedly taken north toward an area controlled by an ISIS offshoot.
A State Department spokesperson said embassy officials are working closely with local authorities and that the Trump administration views the safe return of the U.S. citizen as a top priority. The U.S. Embassy has also restricted staff movements to armored vehicles and prohibited visits to restaurants and open-air markets.
Stern described the region as «31 flavors,» meaning there is everything from Russian proxies to criminal gangs and Islamic fundamentalists running around.
CRUZ CLASHES WITH NIGERIA OVER HIS CLAIMS 50,000 CHRISTIANS KILLED SINCE 2009 IN RELIGIOUS VIOLENCE
A general view of a crowded street market in Niamey, Niger, on May 17, 2023. The capital city has faced rising instability since the 2023 military coup that toppled President Mohamed Bazoum. (Michele Cattani / AFP via Getty Images)
While it’s easy to assume Islamist militants were behind the abduction, Stern cautioned, «until you know…it becomes speculation.»
«At some point, somebody will ask for something, you hope,» he said. «It’s very scary when they don’t ask for anything… the worst case scenario is a hostage taken by someone who doesn’t want anything. Then there’s no play to be made other than find them and kill them, and hopefully you survive that process.»
For now, the focus is on finding proof of life and establishing communication.
U.S. special operations units are likely monitoring surveillance and communications from the region, but Stern cautioned that a rescue attempt would be «the most dangerous thing special operations does.»
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Officials have not said whether any group has claimed responsibility or issued any demands.
Fox News Digital’s Michael Dorgan and Paul Tilsley contributed to this report.
africa,missing persons,terrorism,isis
INTERNACIONAL
Merkley nearly breaks Booker’s filibuster record, wins his praise for fighting ‘Trump’s authoritarian tactics’
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Democrats pulled out all the stops on Wednesday to delay the vote on a short-term spending bill to reopen the government — the 12th time the Senate has considered the measure since the government entered a shutdown on Oct. 1.
Sen. Jeff Merkley, D-Ore., embarked on a nearly 24-hour speech at 6:23 p.m. on Tuesday, concluding his remarks at 5:00 p.m. the next day. Merkley, 68, warned viewers of the authoritarianism he said had become a facet of the Trump administration.
«Be aware and worried about the possibility of the use of an emergency in order to expand authoritarian power. That’s the position we’re in now in the United States of America. Authoritarianism with a rubber-stamp Congress, a court that’s delivering more and more power to the executive and an executive who has a well-planned strategy,» Merkley said in his remarks.
JOHNSON WARNS US ‘BARRELING TOWARD ONE OF THE LONGEST SHUTDOWNS’ IN HISTORY
Sen. Jeff Merkley, D-Ore., speaks to reporters following a weekly Senate Democratic policy luncheon at the U.S. Capitol in Washington, Feb. 19, 2025. (Andrew Harnik/Getty Images)
«Republicans have shut down the government to continue the strategy of slashing Americans’ healthcare,» he said.
His speech comes as lawmakers remain gridlocked over federal funding for 2026. Whereas Republicans in the House of Representatives have passed a short-term funding bill to keep the government open through Nov. 21, Democrats in the Senate have voted a dozen times to defeat the package.
The Senate once again failed to advance the package on Wednesday. It failed in a 54-46 vote.
Democrats, led by Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., and House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, D-N.Y., have demanded an extension of COVID-era supplemental funding for Obamacare healthcare subsidies that are set to sunset in 2025.
SCREAMING MATCH ERUPTS BETWEEN HAKEEM JEFFRIES, MIKE LAWLER AS GOVERNMENT SHUTDOWN CHAOS CONTINUES
Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., and House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, D-N.Y., right, update reporters following their face-to-face meeting with President Donald Trump and Republican leaders on the government funding crisis, at the Capitol in Washington, Sept. 29, 2025. (J. Scott Applewhite/AP Photo)
Republicans need the support of seven Democrats to overcome the 60-vote threshold to overcome a filibuster. The GOP holds 53 seats in the chamber.
Merkley, who came close to breaking Sen. Cory Booker’s 25-hour and 4-minute record that was set earlier this year, put the shutdown blame on Republicans throughout his discourse.
Booker praised Merkley’s stalling efforts online.
«Listening to Senator Jeff Merkley for over 22 hours, it is clear that we need to stand up for our democracy. We must continue to call out and counter Trump’s authoritarian tactics. Thank you, Jeff!» Booker said in a post on X.
BOOKER CONCLUDES RECORD 25-HOUR SPEECH AGAINST TRUMP, MUSK, MARKING THE LONGEST EVER ON THE SENATE FLOOR
On the issue of authoritarianism, which comprised the bulk of Merkley’s remarks, Merkley decried what he saw as the Trump administration’s attempts to push the limits on executive power — like its deployment of the National Guard to urban areas.
«If you remove a clear standard as to whether there is a rebellion and just say a president can deploy the military on a whim in places he doesn’t like against peaceful protesters to distract Americans or to exercise a suppression of dissent, then you have flung the doors open to tyranny. To a strongman state,» Merkley said.
National Guard members began patrolling Memphis in October as part of a federal task force established by President Donald Trump to combat what the administration says is violent crime in the city. (Brett Carlsen/Getty Images)
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President Donald Trump has deployed the National Guard to Washington, D.C., Los Angeles, Chicago, Memphis, and Portland, Oregon, citing a need to protect law enforcement and government operations in those cities.
politics,congress,senate
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