British military personnel and equipment are being sent to Belgium following a request for assistance after a series of drone incursions forced temporary closures of airspace, including Brussels’ main airport, according to a BBC report.
Belgian authorities temporarily shut Brussels Zaventem Airport on Thursday night after drones were detected nearby, with sightings also reported at a military base. Around 3,000 passengers were affected, and Brussels Airlines said it had incurred significant costs after cancelling or diverting flights.
According to the BBC, Chief of the Defence Staff Air Chief Marshal Sir Richard Knighton confirmed that the UK had responded to a direct request from Belgium’s armed forces earlier in the week.
“The defence secretary and I agreed that we would deploy our people and our equipment to Belgium to help them,” Sir Richard told the broadcaster’s Sunday with Laura Kuenssberg programme, adding that British assets were already being sent.
He declined to confirm that Russia was responsible for the incursions, though described that link as “plausible.” Both the Belgian security services and German Defence Minister Boris Pistorius have indicated that Russian involvement is suspected, though Belgium’s Defence Minister Theo Francken has said there is no direct evidence so far.
Francken warned earlier in the week that drone activity over military sites had now escalated into “a serious threat affecting civilian infrastructure across multiple European countries.”
BBC cock up on TV with what appears to be a German corvette appearing in the background along with Harriers… and the CDS seems by personal choice to be wearing his poppy on his right hand lapel and in the face of the frankly, ugly, Kuenssburg, seems slightly disingenuous – dude is seriously bad karma.
Followed by a Con!
Sorry, but what? 😂
That’s a lot of rambling.
Why would the BBC display Harriers and potentially a German corvette? Not rambling, but, observation.
CDS with poppy worn on the right lapel and a persona which is instinctively unlikeable.
I had to look up who the new CDS is as he has failed to make any impression on me – has he given an interview in post before this week What is his approach to the job? His views and beliefs? His initial plans? What does he see as the biggest Defence problems?
Did he really do a good job as CAS? – he failed to solve the pilot training dilemma and presided over the diversity issue when the RAF recruiters for a time were ordered to exercise positive discrimination favouring minority ethnic applicants over white applicants, which is illegal under the Equality Act 2010.
In the era of land warfare in Europe, should we not have had an CDS from the Army?
I thought the CAS who okayed the recruitment discrimination against white men was Wigston, not this CDS.
I recall that CDS for some time have come from the Army, and this was criticised by commentators and by the RAF and RN supporters as well.
I thought the position was meant to rotate amongst the services, which seems only fair when services prejudice and pride are at stake?
Because Remembrance Day covers both of the world wars and all later conflicts, such as the Falklands War where the Harrier served.
As for your “German corvette”, it could easily be a Type 22 Batch 3 frigate: they didn’t serve in Falkands I believe but the image is clearly a montage as it also features a Tommy wearing a Brodie helmet.
Pretty sure being “likeable” is not one of the top priorities when choosing the CDS.
Poppy on right does look odd.
What’s important is that CDS was wearing one. The side of which you wear a poppy is a matter of personal perference. I’ve just come back from Remembrance Day services and I’m wearing mine on the left, but there’s no real reason for that. Some years I’ll wear it in the middle if the weather means I have to bundle up a bit (lovely sunshine at the local memorial today).
Our local MP didn’t show but had someone else laying a wreath on his behalf. I hope he gets well soon, and it wasn’t that he just couldn’t be bothered. It’s important right now that we all bother to remember, however we choose to do it. A minute’s silence, private thoughts, or just go watch the last episode of Blackadder if that’s your thing, but do something.
Kind of highlights how pathetically weak some of our nato partners (especially Belgium) are.
It’s not that hard to understand why many in America view nato as an organisation that is worth propping up anymore
🥱
Well can understand some of their anger over the years but as many brave enough to say it a lot of that problem has been generated by the US itself, just like the World economic dollar dominated economy they instilled post war that made them rich and disadvantaged everyone else if they dared to threaten the hegemony, that MAGA is now so hypocritically unhappy with. Fact is the US wanted to control everything in NATO even as it allowed the ‘little people’ to front certain visual positions because they wanted to equally control events with other major players, they didn’t want a democracy of the military powers just unquestioning compliance, the rest was a cover for their hegemony to make them look different to the Autocratic dictatorships opposing NATO. Unfortunately like the World economic hegemony they created over time it has serious consequences for their own situation especially in both cases as competing powers come to the fore who can’t be badgered into compliance to American will. The rest of NATO started to simply see the US as the real dominant figure to which their own survival almost 100% depended in the end so became compliant as the US wanted but after the wall fell and the perceived threat removed increasingly less concerned about maintaining forces that felt like mere efforts to keep that US hegemony in place. We had become intellectually devoid of self will by US command and thus when the threat much reduced felt no need to maintain the sham anymore. Yes naive but that’s what happens when you spend decades as compliant ‘know your place’ entities with little independent power.
But in the end NATO it’s about self interest, as almost any prominent US military man (rather than redneck voter or isolationist delusional politician) will tell you is vital to US security. They won’t tell the public this as Trump boasts (lies endlessly in reality) about unmatched weaponry, blah, blah, blah they can’t or certainly won’t be able to next decade oppose those forces ranged against them without widespread support.
More clinically Belgium houses vital technology for the production of most of the Worlds silicon chips, even TSMC uses that technology, so yes it has been a freeloader to a degree militarily but look at the bigger picture. If Russia gains actual or effective control over Europe and its technology, and with China beginning to out perform the US in technological and economic progress in many areas (latest ‘Iron’ robots amongst others for example make Optimus look like a cuckoo clock, whatever its hype and trillion dollar snake oil owner) then we all need to work together and if required fight together. Sadly far too many useful idiots either side of the pond don’t see the dangers of disunity including the dementia driven President and his fawning acolytes. The myth of American exceptionalism has led to the arrogance of invulnerability and the exploitation of others for its own wealth has now taken a new very dangerous direction where stealing others wealth and weakening them to maintain its own faltering wealth is reminiscent of the Ottoman Empire. Where did that end for both it and its client States?
Sorry I got a bit sidetracked there. The other point I wanted to actually make when I started that, is that you can belittle Belgium as much as you like but let’s be clear the US was suffering it on a large scale last year, and we did for a while too particularly around US bases here and I don’t remember either concluding or solving whatever was going on, or if they did they kept it very quiet. Denmark is no lightweight and they too have suffered similar problems and Germany too if my memory serves me right in the past. Using universal experiences selectively to criticise a particular state gets us no where in the end, so best to work together and cooperate I think.
Belgium, Spain, Canada, take your pick, they are all laggards or free loaders, whichever you prefer
Sorry if you continue to refuse to fund at the 2% threshold or anywhere near it for years, even the Maga morons have the right to call out these states for being useless as defence partners
well said!
When I heard ‘Belgium’ a week or so ago it really pricked up me ears, Denmark was concerning enough but the explanation about a shadow fleet ship gave a plausible explanation (mind you was the origin determined in the end?). But Belgium, this is rather more concerning, what’s the answer here I wonder, another ship off the coast or operatives and/or useful idiots within? Is there any evidence at all or even speculation? This is clearly resting our defences and will and this is getting very close to home. So far in this latest more focused round I don’t think Britain and France have been targeted so is this targeting easier less capable states testing the water and response before bigger and more capable nations are targeted in a scaled escalation. I mean do we even know if these events are actual hostile actors, useful idiots or just idiots. Concerning that drone incidents have been reported for a few years now yet we seem little advanced in determining their source. I remember watching a live broadcast last year by a guy at Lakenheath I think when there were reports over some nights and no real explanation resulted just various waffle from official sources playing it down. It will be very interesting to see if anything comes from this latest episode because we really do need to start understanding and hopefully nullifying the threat.
What’s worse Russian agency or mere citizens playing stupid games and seemingly be able to do them without ever being caught. Doesn’t bode well either way really does it. We need to get a grip on the problem because it will only get worse as more sophistication and widespread access creeps in.
Or citizens in the employment of Russia, re the arson attack by Dylan Earl and Jake Reeves.
Anyone else noticed that these Drone sightings have got worse since the Infamous drone Incident with the French Frigate ? 👀👀👀
Which ‘incident’? Surely not the one involving the Alsace in the Red Sea, where she downed a drone using her main gun?
Ha, Nope.
Think more along the lines of French Frigate in Scottish Port overflown by Photography Drone with altercation on the dockside. 😁😁😁😁😁😁
The authorities know.
Just as they knew in New Jersey last year.
That’s the real question isn’t it, how much do they know? They aren’t being very forthcoming rightly or wrongly. Certainly whatever they know they don’t seem very successful in countering them as far as we know.
I know what you are saying 😉🤔🫡