The United States has strongly condemned the remarks of Russia's permanent representative to the UN, Vassily Nebenzia, who issued threats against Latvia and other countries in the Baltic region over the alleged use of their territory for the launch of Ukrainian unmanned aerial vehicles.
At a meeting of the UN Security Council on May 19, Nebenzia stated that the Kremlin had information "about Ukraine's plans to launch strike drones from the territory of Latvia and other Baltic countries." According to him, "NATO membership will not protect these states from retaliatory measures." He further claimed that Kyiv had already sent Ukrainian UAV units to Latvia, and emphasized that "Russian intelligence is capable of identifying the launch sites" of such drones.
Latvia's Permanent Representative to the Security Council, Sanita Pavļuta-Deslandes, categorically rejected Nebenzia's accusations, describing them as "pure fiction."
A similar position was expressed by Ukraine's permanent representative, Andriy Melnyk. He emphasized that Russian strikes on the Ukrainian civilian population have made the first half of May 2026 one of the deadliest periods since the start of the "full-scale invasion" of Ukraine.
US: The UN is not a stage for threats against Council members
The United States condemned the Russian rhetoric. US Deputy Permanent Representative to the UN Tammy Bruce stated that the UN "is not a place for threats against a Council member" and emphasized that Washington will fully uphold its obligations under NATO.
Supreme Allied Commander Europe Alexus Grynkewich also commented on the situation, describing the accusations against Latvia as a "standard Russian trick."
Drones and airspace violations in the Baltics
Against the backdrop of verbal escalation, incidents involving unmanned aerial vehicles in the region continue. On the morning of May 19, a Ukrainian drone was shot down over Estonia, intercepted as part of the NATO Baltic Air Policing mission.
Ukrainian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Heorhii Tykhyi commented that Russia is intentionally redirecting Ukrainian drones toward Baltic states using electronic warfare (EW) assets.
On the same day, air raid alerts were issued twice in Latvia due to a probable drone incursion from the Russian side. According to the Latvian National Armed Forces, at least one unmanned aerial vehicle entered the country's airspace and subsequently left it. In both incidents, fighter jets from NATO's air policing forces were scrambled.