The U.S. has pivoted policy to focus more northward. In 2018, it resuscitated the U.S. Navy's Second Fleet to counter Russia, including in the Arctic, closely linked with the establishment of NATO's newest command, the Virginia -headquartered Joint Force Command Norfolk.

Officials in Romania announced Wednesday that NATO deployed two German fighter jets in its airspace in response to a Russian drone attack on Ukraine.

Allied aircraft are often scrambled in NATO nations like Poland and Romania in response to Russian long-range attacks in Ukraine, which regularly target locations along Ukraine's border with its NATO neighbors.

"In connection with the activity of long-range aviation of the Russian Federation, conducting strikes on Ukrainian territory – including with the use of hypersonic missiles – aircraft of the Polish Air Force and allied aviation are operating in Polish airspace,

NATO scrambled two German Eurofighter jets in response to Russian airstrikes near Ukraine's border with Romania overnight into Wednesday. The jets were activated after Russian weapons systems approached Romanian airspace.

Two German fighter jets were dispatched to Romania’s border with Ukraine on Tuesday in response to Russian attacks in the region. Moscow targeted Ukrainian ports on the Danube River,

Rather than exploiting Russia’s weaknesses, a drone-centric NATO could be playing to Russia’s strengths, some experts warn.

As NATO defence ministers met during a virtual get-together, Russia said it had to be part of any discussion on security guarantees for Ukraine and downplayed the likelihood of an imminent summit with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky,