Maria Zakharova, spokesperson for the Russian Foreign Ministry, stated that Russia has issued a "warning" to the Baltic states over allegedly allowing Ukraine to use their airspace to carry out strikes on Russian territory.
"These countries have been given an appropriate warning. If the regimes of these countries have even a bit of sense, they will heed it. If not, they will have to face the consequences," she said.
Similar statements were made a few days earlier by Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov.
Following initial incidents where Ukrainian drones heading toward Russian ports in the Baltic entered the airspace of Baltic states, rumors began circulating in Russian mainstream and social media that these countries had permitted Ukraine to use their airspace.
Latvia stated that Russia has launched a disinformation campaign on this issue and has lodged a protest with Moscow, while Estonia directly rejected Russian accusations of granting permission to Ukraine.
The Ukrainian Foreign Ministry apologized to its partners for the incidents and noted that the drones most likely deviated from their course due to the influence of Russian electronic warfare systems.
Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha later said that Russia is deliberately directing Ukrainian drones to enter the territory of the Baltic states.
The shortest direct route from Ukraine northward to Russian ports around St. Petersburg passes near the eastern borders of Belarus (or directly through its eastern regions), Latvia, and Estonia.