According to the news from the Spanish press El Mundo, the US Central Intelligence Agency CIA conveyed intelligence to the governments of Spain, France and Italy that Russia may be preparing a new drone attack over the Mediterranean. Allegedly, Moscow’s plan includes launching Gerbera-type unmanned aerial vehicles, which will be hidden in containers on civilian merchant ships, from the sea and directed to targets in NATO countries. According to the information provided in the news, Gerbera type drones, which are approximately 2 meters long and have a wingspan of 2.5 meters, can reach speeds approaching 160 kilometers per hour. It is stated that their range is around 600 kilometers. It is considered that if such a system is used on merchant ships, it may be difficult to detect the source of the attack at the first stage.
NOT VERIFIED
An unnamed source from the Lithuanian Ministry of Defense also suggested to El Mundo that launching a drone from the sea by hiding it in a container is not a technically complex method. However, the existence of the intelligence report in the news has not been officially confirmed by the CIA, the governments of Spain, France or Italy. An official from the Finnish Ministry of Foreign Affairs was also asked whether the country had received similar intelligence. The official stated that no information could be given about the content of the intelligence sharing and did not give a clear answer as to whether the report had reached Finland.
FEAR MAKES YOU SELL WEAPONS
The emergence of the claim brought about a new debate, along with the rapidly increasing defense expenditures and arms supplies of European countries in recent years. According to data published by the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute SIPRI on March 9, 2026, major arms imports of European countries increased more than threefold in the 2021-2025 period compared to the previous five-year period. In the same period The increase in US arms exports to Europe reached 217 percent. SIPRI data also reveals that the US share in global arms exports increased to 42 percent in the 2021-2025 period. While 38 percent of American weapons went to European countries, the Middle East’s share remained at 33 percent. Thus, for the first time in nearly two decades, Europe became the largest regional buyer of US arms. During the same period, the USA exported major weapon systems to 35 European countries.
EUROPEAN MARKET IS MONOPOLYED BY THE USA
New joint production agreements were announced between US-based companies such as Anduril, Boeing, General Dynamics Land Systems, Lockheed Martin and Raytheon and European defense organizations. NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte announced that within the scope of these agreements, the way was paved for the production or support of Stinger, AMRAAM, ATACMS and some other American systems in Europe. Analysts also point out that the rising fear of war in Europe is directly reflected in arms orders. While NATO countries are accelerating their investments in air defense, anti-missile, ammunition and anti-drone systems, it is emphasized that the total size of new defense procurements exceeds 50 billion euros.
ITALIANS REPRESENTATIVE
The alliance also plans to invest $40 billion against the drone threat over the next five years. While six NATO countries have initiated a joint project for new land-based precision strike systems, nine countries are working on a joint 155-millimeter ammunition prototype. It is also expressed in Italian defense circles that such leaks increase the fear in the European public and trigger new defense expenditures. There is no concrete evidence publicly available that the CIA produced intelligence to increase arms sales.
