Uploaded May 2026 | Updated September 2026, 3 weeks ago
"Europe stands in full solidarity and unity with Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania. And we are stepping up our support. Because when Baltic States are being tested, Europe as a whole is being tested." - European Commission President von der Leyen
Following recent drone incidents along the EU Eastern border, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen travelled to Vilnius, Lithuania on 26 May 2026 to meet with Lithuanian President Gitanas Nausėda, Estonian President Alar Karis, and Latvian President Edgars Rinkēvičs.
In her speech, President von der Leyen condemned Russia’s deliberate destabilisation efforts along Europe’s Eastern border—including air raid alerts, migrant weaponisation, and hybrid attacks—as part of a broader strategy targeting democratic societies.
Praising Baltic resilience, she reaffirmed the EU’s solidarity, announcing €12 billion in additional SAFE funding for Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania, alongside €1.5 billion redirected from cohesion funds for defence preparedness, border surveillance and economic security. President von der Leyen called for closing preparedness gaps through unified alert systems, cross-border coordination (e.g., via Copernicus and Galileo), and a regional assessment of counter-drone and early-warning capabilities, while urging deeper defence-industrial integration with Ukraine to leverage its battlefield expertise.
She concluded by proposing a hybrid-threats protocol to enable rapid, unified responses, emphasising that deterrence and unity are essential to preserving peace in an era of persistent hybrid and cyber threats.
For the full transcript of President von der Leyen's statement, see here: https://ec.europa.eu/commission/presscorner/detail/en/statement_26_1156
Watch on the Audiovisual Portal of the European Commission:
https://audiovisual.ec.europa.eu/en/media/video/I-290043
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"Europe stands in full solidarity and unity with Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania. And we are stepping up our support. Because when Baltic States are being tested, Europe as a whole is being tested." - European Commission President von der Leyen
Following recent drone incidents along the EU Eastern border, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen travelled to Vilnius, Lithuania on 26 May 2026 to meet with Lithuanian President Gitanas Nausėda, Estonian President Alar Karis, and Latvian President Edgars Rinkēvičs.
In her speech, President von der Leyen condemned Russia’s deliberate destabilisation efforts along Europe’s Eastern border—including air raid alerts, migrant weaponisation, and hybrid attacks—as part of a broader strategy targeting democratic societies.
Praising Baltic resilience, she reaffirmed the EU’s solidarity, announcing €12 billion in additional SAFE funding for Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania, alongside €1.5 billion redirected from cohesion funds for defence preparedness, border surveillance and economic security. President von der Leyen called for closing preparedness gaps through unified alert systems, cross-border coordination (e.g., via Copernicus and Galileo), and a regional assessment of counter-drone and early-warning capabilities, while urging deeper defence-industrial integration with Ukraine to leverage its battlefield expertise.
She concluded by proposing a hybrid-threats protocol to enable rapid, unified responses, emphasising that deterrence and unity are essential to preserving peace in an era of persistent hybrid and cyber threats.
For the full transcript of President von der Leyen's statement, see here: https://ec.europa.eu/commission/presscorner/detail/en/statement_26_1156
Watch on the Audiovisual Portal of the European Commission:
https://audiovisual.ec.europa.eu/en/media/video/I-290043
Disclaimer: Comments considered in breach of our social media moderation policy may be removed. You can take a look at it here: https://europa.eu/!q4KMP8
Follow us on:
-X: twitter.com/EU_Commission
-Instagram: instagram.com/europeancommission
-Facebook: facebook.com/EuropeanCommission
-LinkedIn: linkedin.com/company/european-commission
-Medium: medium.com/@EuropeanCommission
Check our website: https://commission.europa.eu/
