While most reports of UAV sightings have been proven false, some appeared “plausible” despite a lack of any evidence, Theo Francken insists Belgian Defense Minister Theo Francken has defended the drone scare which gripped the country last year and cost some €50 million ($58.5 million) in emergency spending, offering a lackluster apology for personally disseminating images purporting to show the UAVs, which turned out to be false. The drone craze gripped the country, as well as several other EU nations, late last year with numerous sightings of mysterious UAVs reported from military and critical infrastructure sites. The Belgian government declared an emergency situation over the sightings and swiftly allocated €50 million for anti-drone procurement. The scare prompted allegations of Russian involvement, yet no evidence to back up such claims, as well as to prove the very existence of the elusive aircraft, has ever emerged. Moscow at the time dismissed the “drone hysteria” as paranoia.…