NATO intercepts Russian drone heading for Europe's biggest aircraft carrier in 'serious security' incident in Sweden days after Putin issued nuclear war threat
NATO forces were forced to intercept a Russian drone heading for France's 800ft-long aircraft carrier in a 'serious security' incident in Malmö, Sweden today.It comes just a few days after Russian President Vladimir Putin issued a chilling World War Three threat to the West, warning that his 'adversaries know how things could end' if they resort to using a 'nuclear element' in any attack against Moscow.A Russian drone was spied approaching the French aircraft carrier Charles de Gaulle, the only nuclear-powered carrier completed outside of the United States Navy.It was docked at the port of Malmö for a strategic exercise when the Swedish Armed Forces witnessed a drone take off from a nearby Russian ship and head towards the carrier.Swedish operatives subsequently launched a jamming operation against the drone, causing it to disappear from the scene.It is unclear whether it returned to the Russian vessel or crashed into the sea.Meanwhile, an oil leak of unknown origin was detected near the aircraft carrier in Malmö, the coastguard said on Thursday.The coastguard said it had opened an investigation into a potential environmental offence. French Rafale Marine fighter jets are seen on the flight deck of the French aircraft carrier Charles de Gaulle, March 4, 2025 Russian President Vladimir Putin issued a chilling World War Three threat to the West this week'We can confirm that an oil spill has occurred in the port of Malmo, where the French aircraft carrier Charles de Gaulle is moored. Two tankers are also in the same port,' the coastguard said in a statement.'We are investigating from which of the vessels the spill originated and are taking oil samples on site,' it added.Named after French president and general Charles de Gaulle, the carrier ship normally carries around two thousand sailors and military personnel as well as around 30 fighter jets.Earlier this week, Russia's spy agency accused Britain and France of secretly plotting to give Ukraine nuclear weapons.Russia's Foreign Intelligence Service (SVR) alleged the countries were engaged in a clandestine operation to arm Kyiv with more muscle against Moscow, by supplying it with a 'wonder weapon'.'Britain and France realise that the developments in Ukraine leave no chance of achieving their much-desired victory over Russia at the hands of the Ukrainian Armed Forces,' said a statement Tuesday from the spy agency.'However, the British and French elites are not prepared to accept defeat. It is believed that Ukraine needs to be equipped with 'wunderwaffe'.'Kyiv would be able to claim more favourable terms for ending the hostilities if it possessed a nuclear bomb, or at least a so-called 'dirty bomb'.'The Kremlin's accusations were made as Western sources claimed Russia is losing troops faster than it can replace them - with 40,000 casualties a month compared to 35,000 recruitments.Since Moscow's full-scale invasion in February 2022, over 50,000 of Putin's soldiers have deserted, representing nearly 10 per cent of all Russian troops in Ukraine, according to a UN report from September 2025.More than 16,000 military personnel have been prosecuted for desertion-related offences, with over 13,500 conscripts and contract soldiers convicted in 2024.Over the last four years, Putin's forces have seen 1.25 million soldiers killed or injured on the front lines - more than the total sustained by the US during the whole of World War Two.Russia has lost an estimated 157,841 soldiers, while Ukraine is believed to have lost 81,721.Russian frustrations are a possible motivation for their intelligence service's unfounded accusations about supplying Kyiv with nuclear weapons.Moscow said on Thursday it would retaliate against a European Union decision to cut its diplomatic representation in Brussels, and that the move showed that the EU did not deserve to take part in negotiations on ending the war in Ukraine.Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said the EU decision to limit the size of the Russian mission to 40 people was 'discriminatory' and would not go unanswered.It comes as Russia launched a barrage of 420 drones and 39 missiles at Ukraine overnight, as US and Ukrainian envoys prepared to hold more talks in Geneva on ending the war that is now in its fifth year.The night-time bombardment, which included 11 ballistic missiles, targeted critical infrastructure and residential areas across eight regions of Ukraine.Dozens of people, including children, were injured, although authorities did not immediately publish a confirmed total.Zelensky said late on Wednesday that he had spoken by phone with US President Donald Trump and thanked him for his 'efforts and engagement' in pursuing peace negotiations.The US-brokered talks between Moscow and Kyiv are continuing but are deadlocked on the issue of the future of Ukrainian territory that Russia claims as its own.Trump representatives Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner, who were also discussing nuclear negotiations with Iran in Geneva before turning to the war in Europe, were due to meet with Rustem Umerov, the head of Ukraine's national security and defence council. They also joined Trump's call with Zelensky.The envoys were to discuss economic support and the recovery of Ukraine, ways of attracting investment to the country, and frameworks for long-term cooperation.Washington is looking to keep momentum in its yearlong push to stop the fighting and overcome deep enmity between the warring countries.Ukrainian and European officials have accused the Russian president of feigning interest in peace negotiations, hoping to avoid punitive US measures such as additional sanctions while pressing forward with the invasion.Thursday's talks between the American and Ukrainian envoys could also address preparations for an upcoming trilateral meeting with Moscow officials, perhaps next week, Zelesnky said.The Ukrainian leader claimed he had also tasked Umerov with discussing a possible prisoner exchange.Russia returned 1,000 bodies of fallen soldiers to Ukraine on January 29 and received 35 bodies of its fallen troops in return.Ukrainian foreign minister Andrii Sybiha urged allied countries to provide more military aid.'When the whole world demands Moscow to finally stop this senseless war, Putin bets on more terror, attacks and aggression,' Sybiha said in a post on the ministry of foreign affairs website.The Russian Defence Ministry said its air defences shot down 17 Ukrainian drones overnight over a number of Russian regions, as well as the Black and Azov Seas.Ukraine's domestically developed long-range drones have struck oil refineries, fuel depots and military logistics hubs deep inside Russia.Meanwhile, Russia continued to push allegations of a purported plot by European nations to provide Kyiv with a nuclear bomb, without providing any evidence.The Kremlin-controlled lower house of the Russian parliament on Thursday unanimously approved an address urging the United Nations and European legislators to prevent the alleged plan.British and French officials said the claim was a lie.
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