CIA warns Europe of Russian Gerbera drone attack threat via cargo ships

Signs of a new major confrontation are emerging in world politics. The CIA has alerted European countries to a serious threat. According to a report in the Spanish newspaper El Mundo, Russia is planning to secretly attack tourist spots, ports and key infrastructure in major NATO countries in Europe using Gerbera drones smuggled aboard merchant ships. Following the warning, a high alert has been issued across Europe, including in Spain, France and Italy.

Amid the Russia-Ukraine war, Western countries have been continuously providing Ukraine with military and economic support. It is believed that Russia may resort to hidden and limited hybrid attacks instead of direct warfare to retaliate for this support and to pressure European countries politically and economically. The intelligence report has initially assessed that Russia could carry out such action using international merchant ships passing through the Mediterranean Sea.

Details about the nature of this threat have emerged citing sources in Lithuania's Ministry of Defence. Russia could use its domestically built unmanned drone called Gerbera for this purpose. The drone, just 2 metres long and weighing about 18 kilograms, is capable of carrying 4 to 5 kilograms of explosives. It has a range of around 600 kilometres, and due to its small size, it can easily be hidden inside a commercial shipping container.

The drones could be brought onto ships at sea disguised as ordinary cargo and then launched into the air using a catapult. The aim of the drone is not to cause large-scale destruction but to briefly disrupt operations at key airports, energy centres or ports in coastal areas, start small or large fires, and challenge Europe's internal security. This would also give Russia the opportunity to deny direct responsibility.

According to media reports, CIA Director John Ratcliffe made a sudden visit to Moscow in August. Based on sensitive information gathered during and after this visit, the United States shared this information about the potential threat with its European partner countries. The seriousness of this information has caused significant unease in political circles across Europe.

The threat is particularly visible in France. French President Emmanuel Macron called a meeting with the country's senior political leaders to discuss this potential cyber, drone and terror threat, and directed that security of key infrastructure be increased immediately. Italy's Ministry of Defence has said it is closely monitoring these reports, but that no official confirmation of any actual attack has been made at its level. For this reason, the report is currently being treated as a highly important intelligence alert.

Elections and other important events are due to take place in European countries in the coming months. Experts believe that during this period, attempts could be made to create an atmosphere of fear among people by targeting the Mediterranean region, which is significant for tourism and the economy. This is being seen as a Russian tactic to weaken the security of the European Union and NATO through grey-zone actions without engaging in direct war. No direct attack has been officially announced so far, but following this alert, all security agencies in Western countries have gone into full alert mode.