Lithuanian drone incidents draw 2,077 foreign media mentions

Drone incidents in Lithuania generated 2,077 mentions in foreign media across 92 countries, LRT reported, citing media monitoring company Mediaskopas. The largest number of reports came from the United States, Canada and Bulgaria.

US media recorded 709 mentions, followed by Canada with 261 and Bulgaria with 244. Russia accounted for 124 mentions, Ukraine for 88, the United Kingdom for 76, Australia for 73, India for 67, Lithuania for 65 and Turkey for 52.

Russian media promote several narratives

Austėja Baškienė, head of analysis at Mediaskopas, said several main narratives had emerged in Russian media.

One of the most prominent was the belittling and mocking of the incident, with reports highlighting that an object initially thought to be a drone was later identified as a flock of birds. According to Baškienė, this interpretation was used to create the impression that Lithuania and NATO respond to potential threats excessively or even hysterically.

Russian media headlines reportedly presented the incident mockingly and linked it to a broader narrative about an alleged European “fear of drones”.

Another prominent narrative sought to distance Russia from responsibility and direct attention to alternative explanations for the drone’s origin. Russian-language media highlighted possible links to Belarus, smuggling or Ukraine, weakening the potential connection between the incident and Russian military activity.

Baškienė said doubts about Russia’s responsibility were also reinforced through word choice. In one report about President Gitanas Nausėda’s claim that the drone may have been Russian and had deviated from its course, the word “якобы”, meaning “allegedly”, was used to cast doubt on the claim in advance.

“Official Russian communication constructs an opposing narrative in which Russia itself is portrayed not as the source of the threat, but as a target of provocations by the West and Ukraine,” Baškienė said. She added that the incident was also linked to Ukraine and President Volodymyr Zelenskyy through irony and mockery.

Drone entered Lithuanian airspace from Belarus

On Tuesday night, a possible air threat was announced in Vilnius and Kaunas counties after a drone was spotted. The warning was later lifted after authorities reported that the drone had been destroyed.

Allied fighter jets from Italy, which took off from the air base in Šiauliai, shot down the drone using missiles. Initial information indicated that it may have been neutralised in Alytus district, near the village of Navasiolkai. The National Crisis Management Centre later уточнило that it had been shot down near the village of Pratkūnai in Kaišiadorys district.

Preliminary information indicated that the drone entered Lithuanian airspace from Belarus. Defence Minister Robertas Kaunas confirmed that it was carrying explosives and had been neutralised.

President Gitanas Nausėda said the object that entered Lithuanian airspace on Tuesday night and was later shot down was a Russian Gerbera-type drone intended to attack Ukraine but had deviated from its course.