Lithuania warns of serious Russian provocations amid drone accusations

Lithuania’s presidential office has warned of potential “very serious provocations” by Russia following Moscow’s accusations that Vilnius is allowing Ukrainian drones to use its airspace for attacks, calling the claims absurd, **LRT** reports.

Deividas Matulionis, the president’s senior advisor on national security, told Žinių Radijas on Tuesday that Russia’s allegations—linking Lithuania to Ukrainian drone operations—were baseless but could escalate into dangerous actions. “This is absurd, and in this context, very serious provocations against us are possible,” he said, without specifying further.

Matulionis stressed that the situation involved not only Russian propaganda but also coordinated efforts by the country’s special services. “We would not want to go into detail, as this is not public information, but the situation was escalated quite seriously,” he said. “Our assessment is that this was not just a matter of Russian propaganda—it went much deeper, meaning it involved relevant Russian structures.”

The comments follow President Gitanas Nausėda’s recent warning to “warring states in Europe” against using Lithuanian territory for drone operations, which he called a “gross violation of sovereignty and international law.” Matulionis clarified that the statement was primarily directed at Russia, which has increasingly escalated the issue.

Russia has repeatedly accused Baltic states of permitting Ukrainian drones to transit their airspace to target Russian energy and military infrastructure. Russian state media has also speculated that such alleged permissions pose a threat to the security of Kaliningrad, a Russian exclave bordered by Lithuania and Poland.

Baltic and NATO officials maintain that Ukrainian drones have entered regional airspace only after being diverted by Russian electronic warfare systems.

**Delayed response to drone discovery**
Matulionis acknowledged that the Presidential Office received information about a downed drone found in Lithuania’s Utena district “slightly late” from the National Crisis Management Centre (NKVC). The drone was discovered on Sunday in a field near Samanė village, though radar systems had not detected it.

While criticising the delay, Matulionis urged focus on improving response protocols rather than assigning blame. “For now, I would really not want to criticise anything. I think we should all concentrate on finding solutions rather than trying to blame each other,” he said.

NKVC head Vilmantas Vitkauskas earlier told LRT that the drone was likely Ukrainian and showed no immediate signs of carrying explosives. The incident has prompted calls for strengthened anti-drone defences, with Prime Minister Ingrida Šimonytė set to convene a National Security Council meeting on Wednesday.