CIA reportedly warns of Russian drone plot against Western Europe

US intelligence has shared information with several European governments about a possible Russian drone operation against Spain, France or Italy, Spanish daily El Mundo reported on September 23, 2026, citing anonymous diplomatic and defense sources. 

According to the newspaper, the drones could be concealed in shipping containers aboard merchant vessels and launched from the Mediterranean. El Mundo named the Russian-made Gerbera as the likely type, attributing that detail to a source close to Lithuania’s Ministry of National Defense. The paper also said several defense analysts were aware of a CIA report that had circulated among European foreign ministries. 

El Mundo linked the information to CIA Director John Ratcliffe’s unannounced trip to Moscow on August 25, 2026, reporting that European governments were briefed after the visit. The CIA did not comment on the trip. Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said on August 26, 2026, that Ratcliffe had held talks with Russian intelligence officials but had not met President Vladimir Putin. 

Report remains unconfirmed by US and European governments 

As of September 24, 2026, neither the CIA nor the governments of Spain, France or Italy had publicly confirmed the report.  

Speaking at the UN on September 24, 2026, Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani said that Italy viewed “the growing Russian hybrid threats against Europe” with serious concern and specifically referenced the recent attack at Leipzig Airport.

The Gerbera is about two meters (6.6 feet) long, with a wingspan of about 2.5 meters (8.2 feet), a weight of up to 18 kilograms (40 pounds) and a claimed maximum range of 600 kilometers (approximately 370 miles), with actual range depending on payload and weather. 

The Gerbera was designed as a decoy to saturate Ukrainian air defenses by mimicking the Shahed loitering munition, but recovered examples have been found carrying explosive payloads. 

Gerbera drones have already crossed NATO airspace 

The type is already familiar to air defenders on the eastern flank of NATO.

Gerberas were among the Russian drones that entered Polish airspace during the large-scale incursion of September 9 to 10, 2025. Polish authorities said 19 drones crossed the border during the incident, and Polish prosecutors later identified Gerbera wreckage at several locations.

Shortly after midnight on September 15, 2026, Italian Air Force Eurofighter Typhoons on NATO Baltic Air Policing duty shot down a drone over central Lithuania. On September 16, 2026, President Gitanas Nausėda said it was a Gerbera-type drone carrying an explosive warhead, most likely intended for Ukraine and diverted by Ukrainian electronic warfare. 

A day before the incident over Lithuania, the Polish military had recovered another Gerbera drone from the Baltic Sea in the beach area at Rusinowo, near Jarosławiec. 

In July 2025, a Gerbera carrying about two kilograms of explosives flew over Vilnius before coming down at the Gaižiūnai military training area. The post CIA reportedly warns of Russian drone plot against Western Europe appeared first on AeroTime.

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