Finland Ends Drone Alert Amid Fears of Ukraine War Spillover

Finnish authorities said Friday that a suspected drone operation above the Helsinki region no longer posed a threat and that the situation was returning to normal, after hours of emergency response that included scrambling fighter jets and closing the capital's airport.

Helsinki city rescue services had ordered nearly 2 million residents of the Uusimaa region to stay indoors from around 4 a.m. local time (0100 GMT) while fighter jets were deployed. Helsinki Airport was also closed for roughly three hours.

President Alexander Stubb wrote on X that the government had “demonstrated readiness and response capability,” adding that the country was “not facing a direct military threat.” Interior Ministry Rescue Director General Kimmo Kohvakka called the reaction a “precautionary measure” and said “everyday life can continue.”

Finnish authorities did not identify the source of Friday's incident. However, Defense Forces Chief of Staff Kari Nisula told Reuters that Finland had received information from Ukraine about a possible drone straying into the country. Nisula said there was no evidence the drone had entered Finland, but similar scenarios could recur if Russia continues its war in Ukraine.

The incident comes amid fears that the war in Ukraine could spread regionally. The Baltic states of Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania have reported multiple instances of Ukrainian drones apparently firing toward Russia crossing into their airspace, triggering domestic criticism over their ability to counter military threats.

The situation has led to a government crisis in Latvia. Prime Minister Evika Silina resigned Thursday after a coalition partner withdrew. Earlier, the defense minister was dismissed after a drone crashed into a fuel storage facility.

In March, two drones flew into Finnish territory and crashed after flying low over the sea and southeastern Finland.

In a related development, Ukraine continued drone attacks on Russian oil and energy facilities. The Russian Defense Ministry said Friday its air defense systems shot down 355 Ukrainian drones targeting Moscow overnight and the border regions of Belgorod, Bryansk and Kursk. An oil refinery in the city of Ryazan, about 200 km (124 miles) southeast of Moscow, was among the targets. The attack killed three people and wounded 12.

Meanwhile in Kyiv, the death toll from a Russian artillery strike on an apartment building Thursday rose to at least 24, including three children, President Volodymyr Zelensky said. Forty-eight people were wounded.

Amid the fighting, Russia and Ukraine conducted a prisoner swap, each bringing home 205 prisoners of war on Friday. This is the first step in an exchange plan that aims to eventually bring 1,000 people from each side home. The two sides also exchanged bodies, with Russia handing over 526 bodies to Ukraine and receiving 41 in return. Both Kyiv and Moscow thanked the United Arab Emirates for mediating. President Zelensky said most of the prisoners returning to Ukraine had been held by Russia since 2022. “We will continue to fight for every person still in captivity,” he said.