Estonia halts NATO air drills after jet misfires missile

Estonia's defense minister has ordered a halt to NATO air exercises in Estonia pending an investigation after a missile was accidentally fired over the Baltic country's airspace by a Spanish fighter jet on a military exercise this week.

The air-to-air missile that was erroneously launched Tuesday over southern Estonia has not been found, but no people were reported injured or killed by the misfiring, Defense Minister Juri Luik said yesterday.

"The Spanish defense minister has apologized and expressed deep regret," Luik said at a news conference in the Estonian capital of Tallinn, adding that the commander of the Spanish Armed Forces apologized as well.

Estonian Prime Minister Juri Ratas spoke with NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg on Wednesday, expressing Estonia's concern over the "serious incident."