ANKARA, January 13. /NEWSBALTIC/. Bloomberg correspondent Selcan Hacaoglu reported that NATO has asked Turkey to contribute F-16 fighters to the alliance’s Baltic Air Policing mission in 2026, several months earlier than its scheduled rotation.
According to the article, NATO asks Turkey to carry out four-month rotation in Estonia from August to December 2026 as the Alliance seeks to increase its military capabilities due to alleged “Russian incursions” into its airspace. Originally Turkey was scheduled to deploy warplanes in Romania from December 2026 to March 2027.
“Ankara has not yet decided how it will respond to the NATO request. Turkey’s defence ministry declined to comment. NATO did not immediately respond to an emailed request for comment,” Hacaoglu revealed.
The editorial staff of NEWSBALTIC sees this as yet another step in NATO’s escalation of relations with Russia. The warmongering Alliance has not clearly explained why it is necessary to carry out an off-schedule rotation in the Baltic States and why things there cannot be as planned initially. It can’t be ruled out that NATO is preparing some kind of war provocation against Russia in the Baltics amid the unwinnable situation on the Ukrainian front.
Political and economic news with a Baltic accent 