NATO fighter jets have shot down an unmanned drone that violated Lithuanian airspace after crossing from neighbouring Belarus, Lithuanian President Gitanas Nauseda and security officials confirmed, marking the first time a drone has been brought down on Lithuanian soil.
"A drone that just entered Lithuanian airspace was destroyed by NATO fighter jets," Nauseda announced in a statement posted on the X platform.
"I thank Allied personnel for their swift response. With Russia intensifying its aggression against Ukraine, such readiness is vital for our region. Together with our NATO Allies, Lithuania will defend its airspace," he added.
The country's National Crisis Management Centre confirmed the interception, noting that the unmanned craft had crossed into national airspace from Belarus, Moscow's closest ally in the war against Ukraine.
Allied aircraft intercepted and destroyed the drone approximately 30 minutes later over Kaunas County, situated west of the capital.
Escalating regional border incidents
The downing follows a close call involving former British Prime Minister Boris Johnson, whose private train in Ukraine was forced to accelerate toward the Polish border on Monday morning to outrun a detected incoming drone that struck a railway line shortly after his convoy had passed.
Airspace incursions along NATO's eastern flank have intensified during the conflict.
In 2025, NATO forces intercepted four Russian drones over Polish territory, prompting Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk to warn that the incursions posed a direct threat and to invoke NATO's Article 4 consultations—marking only the eighth time the crisis mechanism has been triggered in the alliance's history.
