Downed Drone Over Lithuania Was Russian, Likely Meant for Ukraine, Nausėda Says

Lithuanian President Gitanas Nausėda said Wednesday that an unmanned aircraft shot down over Lithuania was most likely a Russian drone originally intended to strike Ukraine, which had veered off its intended path. Speaking to reporters after a meeting of the state defense council, he said the drone was probably diverted by Ukrainian electronic warfare measures before entering Lithuanian territory, where it was ultimately destroyed.

Nausėda identified the aircraft as a Gerbera-type drone, a low-cost, plywood-built long-range unmanned aircraft that Russia has used extensively. Gerbera drones are commonly deployed as decoys to overwhelm air defense systems, though they are also capable of carrying explosives.

An Italian fighter jet participating in NATO's Baltic air policing mission intercepted the drone over central Lithuania in the early hours of Tuesday. This marked the first time a NATO aircraft has shot down a drone in Lithuanian skies. Russia has not issued any comment on the incident.

According to Lithuania's public broadcaster LRT, citing government officials, the drone entered the country from neighboring Belarus and traveled roughly 100 kilometers across Lithuanian territory before being shot down. While Belarus is not formally a party to Russia's war against Ukraine, it has permitted Russian forces to use its territory as a staging area for military operations.

Nausėda said Lithuania's military is currently examining the drone's electronic components to determine its intended target. He stressed that Lithuania needs adequate capabilities to intercept such drones, while questioning whether deploying fighter jets is an efficient method for doing so.

The president added that the overall security situation in Lithuania and across NATO remains unchanged, but cautioned that further incidents, provocations and sabotage — including potential false-flag operations — cannot be ruled out. Similar suspected Russian drones have previously been downed over Poland, Romania, Latvia and Estonia.