Macron supports downing unidentified drones

French President Emmanuel Macron said at the European Political Community summit in Copenhagen on Thursday 2 October that drones violating European airspace "can be destroyed".

"And I think it's very important to have a clear message. Drones, which would violate our territories, are just taking a big risk. They can be destroyed, full stop," Macron said. 

In September, unidentified drones were spotted flying over the Mourmelon-le-Grand military base in northern France.

On 30 September, the French Navy said authorities were investigating a possible violation by the oil tanker Boracay sailing under the flag of Benin – a vessel considered part of Russia's shadow fleet.

Media reports suggested that Boracay could be linked to recent drone incidents over Denmark, as the ship was sailing near its coast.

On 2 October, French law enforcement detained two crew members of the Boracay tanker.

Earlier, German newspaper Der Spiegel reported that German authorities were looking into suspicions that a UAV had deliberately flown over key critical infrastructure facilities in Schleswig-Holstein late last week to survey them.