Droning on

As The Economist and others pointed out, the breach of Polish airspace last week by 19 Russian drones was the most-serious incursion into Nato territory since the foundation of the alliance in 1949. Czech Defense Min. Jana Černochová of ODS told MFD that it was confirmation of the need to increase defense spending to 5% of GDP. The priority, she said, is to finance the strategic projects concluded during the tenure of the Fiala government (infantry fighting vehicles, F-35 fighters, transport aircraft, tanks). Also of fundamental importance, she said, is strengthening air defenses against both missiles and drones. She could have said the same thing if a barrage of missiles had hit a Nato country, but these were drones. Little has in fact been said about the basic need to have drone detection, tracking, signal-jamming and hacking & commandeering capabilities. There's also the fundamental question of a policy of measured retaliation to an intentional drone attack. Instead of learning from the Russian incursion into Nato territory, Černochová and the experts advising her merely found another excuse to spend as much money as possible.