NATO fighter jets shot down a drone that entered Lithuanian airspace overnight, Lithuanian President Gitanas Nauseda announced in the early hours of Tuesday.
The drone was intercepted near the central-southern village of Pratkunai, outside Kaunas, Lithuania's second-largest city. Authorities said it entered from neighbouring Belarus and was heading west.
Nauseda wrote: "A drone that just entered Lithuanian airspace was destroyed by NATO fighter jets. With Russia intensifying its aggression against Ukraine, such readiness is vital for our region. Together with our NATO Allies, Lithuania will defend its airspace."
The origins of the drone have not been confirmed. A spokesperson for Lithuania's national crisis management centre said they were yet to be determined. Moscow has not commented on the incident.
Drone alerts sounded across the capital Vilnius and the surrounding region earlier on Tuesday. Lithuania's armed forces and Italian pilots serving in the NATO Air Defence Mission were credited with a "swift and responsible response" to the incursion, according to the country's Ministry of Defence.
Lithuanian Foreign Minister Kestutis Budrys thanked allies on Tuesday morning, saying their "presence helps protect our skies and strengthens our security." He added: "This is best example of allied unity and resolve in action – sending a clear message that NATO stands vigilant, committed, and ready."
The incident follows a separate drone sighting in Lithuania on Sunday, 13 September, when an object was reported to have likely entered from Belarus and travelled across Lithuanian territory before crossing into Russian airspace. That incident did not trigger air threat alerts.
In May, residents in Vilnius were forced to take shelter after a drone alert briefly grounded flights and suspended rail travel.
Lithuania shares a large portion of its southern and eastern border with Belarus, a close Russian ally. Lithuania, Latvia, and Estonia all joined NATO in 2004 and are signatories to Article 5, which states that an armed attack against one NATO member shall be considered an attack against all members.
The three Baltic states have repeatedly experienced drone incursions into their territories since Russia began its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022. NATO jets have scrambled multiple times to intercept stray drones that crossed into Estonian and Latvian airspace. In May, a NATO fighter shot down a Ukrainian drone over Estonia in what was described as the first interception of a foreign drone in Baltic airspace by NATO air police since the invasion began.
Ukraine has attributed such stray drone incidents to Russian electronic warfare technology, which is designed to alter the flight paths of Ukrainian drones.
Meanwhile, Poland also reported aviation activity in its airspace on Monday night, citing the activity of Russian jet-powered unmanned aerial vehicles conducting strikes on Ukrainian territory. Polish authorities described the measures as preventive and aimed at securing airspace, particularly in areas adjacent to threatened regions.
On Monday, the Polish military recovered a suspected Russian drone from the Baltic Sea near the beach in Rusinowo, close to Jaroslawiec. Defence Minister Wladyslaw Kosiniak-Kamysz said: "The military has located and recovered a drone from the Baltic Sea near the beach in Rusinowo, close to Jaroslawiec. Preliminary inspection indicates that it is a Russian military drone."
A Polish armed forces spokesperson said the drone appeared to be a Gerbera, a low-cost long-range aerial drone constructed from materials such as plywood and foam. Such drones are often used as decoys but can also carry explosives. It was recovered by a hydrographic vessel.
Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk has repeatedly warned that NATO countries should expect an increase in provocations from Moscow.
On Sunday, a Russian drone struck a passenger train on Ukraine's border with Poland, shortly after a group of foreign diplomats had travelled on the same line.
