NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte said the alliance must find cheaper ways to intercept Russian drones, warning that Western militaries cannot keep relying on missiles that cost hundreds of thousands of dollars to down weapons worth only a fraction of that.

The comments came after a series of incidents involving Russian drones and aircraft entering NATO airspace, including possible incursions into Denmark that Rutte called “very worrying.” 

“It is not sustainable that you would take down thousand- or two-thousand-dollar drones with missiles that cost you maybe half a million or a million dollars,” Rutte told Bloomberg. 

He said NATO was learning from Ukraine’s experience and would roll out new counter-drone technologies in the coming weeks.

Ukraine proves expensive missiles can’t beat cheap drones

The admission comes as Russia escalates its drone war against Ukraine, launching 11,162 long-range drones in 2024 alone while NATO allies struggle with the economic mathematics of defense. 

Ukraine’s battlefield experience shows that traditional Western air defense systems face unsustainable costs when confronting mass drone attacks – a lesson now forcing the entire alliance to rethink its approach to air defense.

When 19 Russian drones violated Polish airspace in September, Warsaw’s advanced air defense systems shot down only four, prompting Poland to seek training alongside Ukrainian forces who regularly intercept 500-600 Russian drones per night.

Rutte acknowledged that, for now, the alliance lacks sufficient equipment but said development efforts are advancing quickly. He described the approach as complementing traditional air defense systems with more affordable interceptor technologies.

European governments have privately warned Moscow they are prepared to shoot down further violations. Russia has denied deliberate incursions, calling one recent drone crossing into Poland an error.