NATO fighter pilots shot down a drone that entered Lithuanian airspace at night, the Lithuanian President said.
Authorities said the drone likely entered southern Lithuania, near the second-largest city of Kaunas, from neighboring Belarus shortly after midnight on Tuesday.
Lithuanian President Gitanas Nausėda wrote in a statement on X: “A drone that just entered Lithuanian airspace was destroyed by NATO fighter jets.”
The origin of the drone has not yet been established, said a representative of the Lithuanian National Crisis Management Center.
Earlier on Tuesday, drone alerts were sounded in the capital Vilnius and the surrounding region.
Shortly after midnight local time (2100 GMT), alerts were sent to phones in the region warning of a potential drone incursion and urging residents to “find a safe place” and “wait until the situation is clear.”
Lithuanian armed forces and Italian pilots serving in the NATO air defense mission “demonstrated a rapid and responsible response” to the drone incursion, Lithuania’s defense ministry said.
Nauseda’s social media post added: “As Russia intensifies its aggression against Ukraine, such readiness is vital for our region. Together with our NATO allies, Lithuania will defend its airspace.”
Moscow did not comment on the incident.