Ireland probes possible drone sighting ahead of Donald Trump visit

Irish police said Wednesday they were investigating a reported drone sighting, as the country's security capabilities come under scrutiny ahead of a visit by US President Donald Trump.

Several European countries have been spooked by drone sightings near airports and military bases in the past year, and an explosive-laden craft was found in Germany last month, with the finger of blame pointed at Russia.

Police in Dublin told AFP they were investigating an "alleged sighting of an unconfirmed object over the Irish Sea, off the east coast" on Tuesday evening.

Air traffic control firm AirNav said the sighting was reported by an aircraft arriving in Dublin.

Trump is due to meet Irish leaders in Dublin on Saturday before travelling to his golf resort in western Ireland, which is hosting the Irish Open tournament this week.

Ireland is also taking on the rotating EU presidency and launched a major security operation last week for meetings of EU foreign and defence ministers.

The government promised to spend EUR19 million on counter-drone technology after several drones were detected near Dublin during a visit by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky last December.

Ireland spends roughly 0.2% of its economic output on defence, lower than any of its EU counterparts.

source: AFP

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