Nato jets down drone in Lithuanian airspace after bloc warns strikes will drive support for Ukraine
The drone was shot down near the village of Pratkūnai in the Kaišiadorys district, about 100 km west of Vilnius and near the Kaunas Reservoir, Lithuania’s National Crisis Management Center said. He also pledged to strengthen the 32-member alliance’s defences along its eastern border with Russia. It remained in the country for about 30 minutes and flew along the outskirts of populated areas before being intercepted, he said. Meanwhile, Russia’s Defence Ministry said its forces shot down 222 Ukrainian drones overnight.
NEW DELHI: Nato fighter jets shot down a drone that entered Lithuanian airspace overnight, officials said Tuesday, in an incident that came less than a day after Nato Secretary-General Mark Rutte warned that strikes close to alliance territory would push the bloc to step up support for Ukraine. Lithuania’s military said it was the first time a drone had been shot down in the country’s airspace. The incursion came shortly after Rutte, speaking at Nato headquarters in Brussels on Monday, said strikes “close to NATO territory” demonstrated Russian President Vladimir Putin’s “desperation and also his desire to sow fear and terror. “Russia is growing increasingly reckless as it continues its terrible war against Ukraine,” Rutte said. Antanas Matutis, commander of the Lithuanian air force, said wreckage from the drone had been recovered and that it “likely” was carrying explosives. Vilmantas Vitkauskas, head of Lithuania’s crisis management centre, told public broadcaster LRT that the drone most likely entered Lithuanian airspace from Belarus. Kyiv says it is ‘ready to support de-escalation’ The incident came as Russian drone strikes continued across Ukraine, following a social media post by US President Donald Trump on Monday claiming Russia and Ukraine had agreed “not to hit” each other’s energy infrastructure. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said late Monday that Kyiv was “ready to support de-escalation. And so far, no one has seen any genuine desire on Russia’s part to move toward ending the war,” he said. Ukraine’s State Emergency Service said Tuesday that eight people were wounded in Russian strikes on Kyiv since the start of the day, including two people injured in strikes on gas stations in the capital. In the Russian city of Taganrog, a “massive” Ukrainian drone attack sparked several fires, regional Governor Yuri Slyusar said. He said two apartment buildings and three private homes were damaged, along with an educational institution, agricultural warehouses and a site belonging to Russian e-commerce company Ozon.
Authorities did not disclose the drone’s origin or purpose, saying the incident remains under investigation. Drone ‘likely’ carrying explosives Drone incursions have repeatedly raised security concerns in Lithuania, which borders Belarus, a close Russian ally, and Russia’s Kaliningrad exclave. Trump provided no further details about the purported agreement, while Russia did not immediately comment. Previous attempts to broker even limited ceasefires have repeatedly collapsed, with Moscow and Kyiv accusing each other of violations. “We see that the Russians feel the pressure from our precise strikes on Russia’s war economy. “But if our American partners can ensure that Russia is genuinely ready to stop this war aimed at destroying life — and to do so for real and for the long term — Ukraine will take its own de-escalatory steps. Catch the latest World News and Live updates. Download the TOI app.