Lithuania lifts nationwide air attack alert after suspected drone activity

The Lithuanian military announced on Tuesday that a nationwide air attack alert has been lifted, following earlier warnings of potential drone activity near the country’s borders, LRT.lt reports.

The alert was triggered after radar detected an object with characteristics of an unmanned aerial vehicle near Lithuania’s border. NATO’s air policing mission was activated in response, and airspace above Vilnius Airport was temporarily closed.

Residents in the districts of Ignalina, Utena, Švenčionys, and Zarasai initially received a yellow-category air threat warning. The alert later expanded to Vilnius County, where a “red” signal was issued, urging people to seek shelter. The warning for Vilnius was canceled at 10:51 AM, with the nationwide alert lifted at 11:40 AM.

Interior Minister Vladislav Kondratovič acknowledged that not all emergency response mechanisms functioned as intended during the incident. Authorities will analyze the situation to address any shortcomings.

Police confirmed no reports of a drone crash in Lithuanian territory, despite social media speculation. The suspected drone was tracked in Belarusian airspace before NATO’s air policing mission was activated.

Recent weeks have seen multiple drone incidents in Lithuania and neighboring Baltic states. On Sunday, an unmanned aircraft, believed to be of Ukrainian origin and carrying explosives, crashed in Utena district. Earlier this year, a Ukrainian military drone also landed in Varėna district after reportedly being disrupted by Russian electronic warfare. Last week, NATO fighters downed a drone in Estonian airspace.

In previous incidents, Russian “Gerbera” drones entered Lithuanian airspace twice, one of them carrying explosives.