The key facts

  • Two Italian Eurofighters scrambled under NATO command after a drone was detected in Lithuanian skies
  • Debris damaged a car on the Biržai–Pasvalys highway, no injuries reported
  • Lithuania's defence minister believes the object came from Poland and asks Warsaw to join the investigation

Incident in Lithuanian skies

On Sunday morning, two Italian Eurofighter fighters operating under NATO command were scrambled after a drone was detected in Lithuanian airspace. This was reported by an alliance spokesperson, whose remarks were cited by the Italian news agency ANSA. He noted that an investigation is underway, NATO is in close contact with the Lithuanian authorities and is ready to respond to any threats around the clock.

Car damaged

According to the authorities, debris damaged a car travelling from Biržai toward Pasvalys in the north of the country. Prime Minister Mindaugas Sinkevičius said the driver heard an explosion, after which a piece of debris dented the car's door. There were no injuries. Police cordoned off the scene and are collecting evidence.

Versions of the drone's origin

Lithuania's Defence Minister Robertas Kaunas said that, according to preliminary data, the object entered the country from Poland; he contacted his Polish counterpart and asked Warsaw to join the investigation. Head of the National Crisis Management Centre Vilmantas Vitkauskas suggested that it was most likely a Ukrainian drone that may have ended up in Lithuanian airspace during Kyiv's strikes on the St Petersburg region. Due to bad weather, the pilots were unable to visually identify the object.

Reaction of the authorities

Kaunas called it 'strange and unacceptable' that the air alert was declared only in northern Lithuania; the military has been tasked with preparing a detailed report, and the authorities will check whether public warnings were delayed. President Gitanas Nausėda wrote on X that Russia's war against Ukraine 'is spilling over to the eastern flank of NATO and the EU,' and that the drone that exploded over the north of the country posed a danger to the civilian population.