Dr Oliver Hartwich: Germany silent on suspected Russian drone attack to avoid boosting far right

Drones near airports, at least in New Zealand, are usually a nuisance rather than a threat. They are often flown by careless amateurs who have not read the rules.

What happened at Leipzig airport last Tuesday night was different. A bus driver at the East German airport noticed something hovering just above the southern runway, beside a Ukrainian cargo aircraft. He kicked it out of the air. Then he called security, and the federal police sent a robot. It found a tin can fixed to the drone with a detonator seated in its base.

Dr Oliver Hartwich: How Nato failed Putin’s drone test

On Wednesday morning last week, I was getting ready for my afternoon speech at the Financial Services Council conference in Auckland.

Between sessions, I scrolled through X on my phone. What I saw shocked me. Russian drones had violated Polish airspace. NATO fighters were scrambling in darkness. For the first time since the Ukraine war began, a NATO member was firing on Russian military assets.