NATO conducts exercises near Kaliningrad amid escalating strikes and drone base reports

Tensions across Eastern Europe remain high following unannounced US-led NATO maneuvers near Russia's Kaliningrad enclave. The operation featured American, Norwegian, and Polish forces supported by surveillance aircraft, which NATO described as routine exercises to enhance collective defense.

Simultaneously, air strikes between Russia and Ukraine escalated. Russian ballistic missile strikes targeted Kyiv, killing two people and wounding six, while earlier drone strikes damaged a commercial facility in northern Ukraine. Ukrainian forces launched retaliatory drone strikes against Russia's Saratov region, resulting in several casualties.

Meanwhile, a media investigation revealed that Moscow has established ten covert launch facilities near NATO borders. According to the report, these sites facilitate long-range drone strikes deep into Ukrainian and allied territories.

Sources: Investor.bg, Mediapool, Nova TV