The Kremlin warned on 27 June that Estonia’s willingness to host NATO aircraft capable of carrying nuclear weapons constitutes “a direct danger” to Moscow. Presidential spokesman Dmitry Peskov told Russian media that the plan is escalatory and comes at a time when relations between Russia and the Baltic states are already virtually non-existent. Peskov’s comments respond to Estonian Defence Minister Hanno Pevkur, who told the Tallinn daily Postimees that the country is prepared to accept allied aircraft, including U.S.-made F-35A fighters with dual-use capability, as part of NATO’s rotational air-policing missions. Pevkur said the possibility that some jets might be configured for nuclear payloads does not alter Estonia’s readiness to accommodate them. The exchange underscores rising military tensions on NATO’s eastern flank as the alliance expands its presence near Russia’s borders. Moscow has repeatedly cited deployments of advanced Western weaponry in the Baltics as a security threat, while Estonia and its allies say the build-up is necessary after Russia’s 2022 invasion of Ukraine.