Warning shots over the Baltic and a ceasefire condition
A Russian warship's fire near a German helicopter on 4 December 2024 came days after Ukraine's president set out terms for a ceasefire.
What happened over the Baltic Sea on 4 December 2024? A Russian Navy warship fired warning shots at a German helicopter conducting a routine patrol, forcing its pilots to make evasive manoeuvres.
German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock condemned the incident, describing it as part of Russia's hybrid warfare against NATO. The episode was reported under the heading of Russia–NATO relations during the Russo-Ukrainian War.
A ceasefire condition days earlier
On 29 November 2024, Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskyy said his country was ready to agree to a ceasefire if NATO protected parts of Ukraine. The remark touched on peace negotiations and on Ukraine's relations with the alliance.
The two reports concerned different arenas, one at sea and one in diplomacy, but both bore on the relationship between Russia, NATO and the war in Ukraine as 2024 drew to a close.
