In a rare dangerous incident and close-call, European media reports have described that the crew of a Russian ship 'fired' upon a Germany army helicopter which was monitoring the vessel's movements in the Baltic Sea.
"German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock announced increased surveillance in the Baltic Sea after a Russian ship fired at a Bundeswehr helicopter during a mission," EuroNews writes.
The Bundeswehr helicopter was confirmed to have been on a reconnaissance mission at an unclear date and time, but the Russian ship - described in The Daily Mail as a warship - fired signaling ammunition in an apparent effort to warn the aircraft off.
Baerbock disclosed the incident for the first time on the sidelines of a NATO foreign minister's meeting in Brussels, but gave few other details.
"Signal ammunition is used for warning shots rather than attack, but this sort of incident is a sign of how close NATO and Russia are getting to facing each other directly," Daily Mail concludes.
Currently there's a lot of Western monitoring of the Baltic Sea after several communications cables which link Finland, Sweden, Germany, and Lithuania were severed in a suspected sabotage incident.
Allegations and focus have remained on the Chinese vessel Yi Peng 3 which was observed in the area at the time of the suspected sabotage. It's believed to have intentionally dragged its anchor to damage the underwater cables. The Swedish government has demanded answers of Beijing.
Tensions have been soaring of late between Berlin and Moscow, given Baerbock on Tuesday also told NATO allies that all options are on the table regarding the Ukraine war, presumably even the potential for deploying Western troops there.
Russian state media has picked up on her hinting at this scenario:
She suggested that a potential peace deal could include security guarantees for Kiev, such as the prospect of NATO membership and continued military support from the West, as well as an international peacekeeping mission.
Asked about what military role Germany could play in such a deal, Baerbock was quoted by the Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung (FAZ) as saying that “only we as Europeans can protect peace together,” suggesting that EU countries, including Germany, could send their soldiers to Ukraine.
The Kremlin is unlikely to ever accept a deal which puts NATO 'peacekeeping' forces even closer on its doorstep. Thus Russian officials are deeply suspicious of any talk of peacekeeping troops.
With the Russian army on the offensive, making continual and steady gains in the Donbas, Putin is not going to be in the mood to concede much if and when direct negotiations finally happen.
