dpa
Rome
Italian officials are investigating after spotting a suspected Russian drone repeatedly flying over an EU research facility at Lake Maggiore, according to a report by the Italian news agency ANSA on Sunday.
The reconnaissance drone is said to have flown over the facility five times in the past month, prompting the public prosecutor’s office in nearby Milan to open an investigation, ANSA and the daily newspaper Corriere della Sera reported.
The European Union’s Joint Research Centre, located on the Italian lake shore in the municipality of Ispra since 1960, is currently conducting research into nuclear safety, energy efficiency and the security implications of drones. The Italian arms company Leonardo has several factories in the area.
There are other such EU research centres in Brussels and Luxembourg. ANSA reported, citing legal sources, that formal investigation proceedings against unknown individuals are to be opened on Monday.
Germany’s cabinet recently decided to authorise the army to shoot down suspicious drones seen near military sites or other critical infrastructure.
A statement from Interior Minister Nancy Faeser said that, “especially since Putin’s war of aggression against Ukraine, we have seen that drones are being used more and more frequently, which poses an increasing challenge for the police and their current technology”.
