Belgium Mulls NATO Article 4 Activation After Drone Disruption Sparks National Security Alarm
Brussels is preparing to invoke Article 4 of the NATO treaty, a rarely used but symbolically powerful clause, after a series of drone incursions raised serious concerns over airspace security and national defense.
The country’s Defense Minister, Theo Franken, confirmed that consultations with NATO allies are under consideration in the "coming hours and days" as Belgium grapples with escalating unmanned aerial activity over sensitive civilian and military zones.
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| Theo Franken; Via: PutinPulse on X |
Air traffic was halted for hours, causing widespread chaos. At least 41 flights were canceled and 24 diverted, according to Skeyes, Belgium’s air traffic control authority.
Seven remaining flights were cleared to depart shortly before the airport’s scheduled midnight closure. But the incident at Brussels Airport wasn’t isolated.
Just weeks earlier, 15 unidentified drones were spotted over the Elsenborn military base, a strategically significant installation near the German border.
Belgian media reported that the drones not only hovered over sensitive military infrastructure but possibly breached German airspace as well, a transnational violation that could push this issue onto NATO’s collective security agenda. Military experts and Belgian authorities are treating these incursions as deliberate, not accidental, with investigations now underway.
“We must react quickly,” said Franken, citing the evolving nature of airborne threats and their potential to destabilize civilian and military operations alike. His statement underscores Belgium’s growing concern that its airspace vulnerabilities may no longer be hypothetical.
Article 4 of the NATO treaty allows any member state to call for consultations when they perceive a threat to their territorial integrity, political independence, or security.
While not a commitment to collective military action, invoking Article 4 is a serious geopolitical signal, a step historically taken in moments of regional instability, such as during the Syrian conflict or Russian escalations in Eastern Europe.
Belgium’s move would be about redefining what constitutes a modern security threat. As civilian airports and military installations alike become potential targets for low-cost, high-impact technology, the NATO alliance faces pressure to expand its deterrence doctrine beyond tanks and missiles to include the grey-zone warfare of drone surveillance and disruption.