Drone crashes in northern Lithuania; NATO jets scrambled
Debris hit a civilian car but caused no injuries; Lithuania says drone likely entered from Poland and has sought a joint probe.
A small unmanned aerial vehicle crashed in northern Lithuania after what authorities say was an incursion from neighbouring Poland, officials reported on Sunday. Debris from the drone struck a civilian car but caused no injuries, Lithuanian authorities said.
Authorities scramble NATO fighters, open probe
NATO fighter jets were dispatched to identify the object, but commanders were unable to establish visual contact because of adverse weather. Lithuania has proposed a joint investigation with Poland into the origin and circumstances of the incident.
"The Russian aggressive war against Ukraine is spilling over onto the eastern flank of NATO and the EU," wrote the president of Lithuania, Gitanas Nauseda, on X. He added that the drone, whose origin is being investigated, exploded over the northern part of the country and represented a danger to civilians.
Vilmantas Vitkauskas, head of the National Crisis Management Centre, said remnants of the drone damaged a moving civilian vehicle but that no one was hurt. The crash triggered air-threat warnings for residents in several northern districts of Lithuania and for some adjacent border regions in Latvia.
Defence Minister Robertas Kaunas said the device most likely entered Lithuanian airspace from neighbouring Poland and that authorities are examining all available information. NATO involvement aimed to establish the nature of the object and to monitor any further developments.
The Lithuanian government did not immediately assign blame beyond the president’s public allegation that Russia was behind the incident; investigations and international consultations with Poland are ongoing.
Photo: press material from the event
