Russian flares near Danish frigate: Ambassador summoned

The incident occurred on Monday evening "in connection with a routine photo reconnaissance" of the frigate in international waters off the Danish port of Gedser, the ministry said. Nothing happened to the crew.

Such light ammunition is pyrotechnics that are usually used at sea as attention or distress signals, the statement continued. According to researcher Peter Viggo Jakobsen from the Danish Defense Academy, this incident can be assumed to have been warning shots or a demonstration of force. "The Russians are saying: Stop taking photos of us and don't fly so close to us," Jakobsen told the Danish news agency Ritzau.

Denmark summons Russian ambassador

Danish Foreign Minister Lars Løkke Rasmussen described the incident at X as “absolutely unacceptable” and summoned the Russian ambassador to Denmark. Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen said in a written statement to Danish Radio that she was not surprised: "Because this is a pattern that we see across Europe. An increasingly aggressive and self-confident Russia that has intensified its hybrid war against Europe and is testing and challenging NATO.”