Belarus called in Lithuania’s Charge d’Affaires Erikas Vilkanecas to the Foreign Ministry following an incident where a Ukrainian military drone, launched from Lithuanian territory, trespassed into Belarusian airspace. The drone, named “Chaika,” was detected near Stanislavtsy in the Vitebsk region, initially targeting Russian sites. Belarus criticized Lithuania for not taking preventive measures or giving advance notifications, demanding an official investigation and future airspace security measures.
The Latvian armed forces reported a foreign drone breaching their airspace, prompting air alerts in eastern regions and the scrambling of NATO fighter jets. This event follows a series of drone incursions in the Baltic States, including a NATO fighter jet downing a drone in Estonia and a military drone crash in Lithuania. Baltic authorities suspect these drones, many of which are Ukrainian, strayed off course from targeting Russian sites.
Despite these incidents, no casualties have been reported. However, the crash of two drones in Latvia led to political repercussions, resulting in the dismissal of the defense minister and the subsequent resignation of Prime Minister Evika Silina’s government.
