Nausėda: drone NATO shot down over Lithuania was Russian, aimed at Ukraine
After Italian NATO jets downed a drone over Lithuania, the president says it was a Russian Gerbera likely knocked off course by Ukrainian jamming.
Part of a larger narrative
Ukraine's Escalating Drone War
- Zelensky presses sanctions and offers energy ceasefire as Russia strikes during his UN speech
- Russian jet-powered drones hit Kyiv again, injuring eight
- Finland, Ukraine sign drone deal to expand defense cooperation
- Putin's United Russia wins record Duma supermajority in wartime vote
- Ukrainian drone strike sets Moscow's only oil refinery ablaze
What to know
- NATO jets, led by Italian pilots, shot down a drone over Lithuania overnight Sept. 14-15 — the first such interception in Lithuanian airspace.
- President Nausėda says the drone was a Russian Gerbera likely intended for Ukraine but possibly diverted off course, including by Ukrainian electronic warfare.
- The incident is part of a wider pattern of incursions and provocations on NATO's eastern flank, including a false Vilnius airport alarm, repeated Polish airspace scrambles, and a Russian warship firing flares at a Danish helicopter.
- EU officials, including Kaja Kallas, call the incidents deliberate rather than accidental, warning Europe must raise the cost to Russia.
The dispute Commenters split between blaming Russia outright for the incursions and mocking the West/Lithuania's alarmed response to false alarms as disproportionate fear. · positions read across 52 posts and comments
Russia bears full responsibility for these incidents because the war in Ukraine is the root cause.
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“These things wouldn't happen at all had russia not invaded Ukraine russia gets the whole blame.”
Eddyzk · Reddit ↗
Lithuania and the region are overreacting out of fear, mistaking birds for drones.
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“As the saying goes back home, "Fear has big eyes." Lithuania realizes it backed the wrong horse—and that it will inevitably be held accountable for it. Now, it trembles at the sight of a flock of birds.”
cmrd_msr · Reddit ↗
Europe lacks the will to respond forcefully to these provocations.
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“Europe is too chicken to do any of this stuff. Europe had lost its balls in the process of two World Wars. So it isn’t happening.”
Educational_Set3016 · Reddit ↗
Gitanas Nausėda President of Lithuania
Kaja Kallas EU High Representative for Foreign AffairsLaurynas Kasčiūnas Chair, Lithuanian National Security and Defense Committee
Mark Rutte NATO Secretary-GeneralLithuanian Defense Ministry National defense authority
How it unfolded 7 developments, newest first · click a bar or a number to jump articlesvideospostscomments
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Nausėda says downed drone was Russian, likely aimed at Ukraine
After a State Defense Council meeting, President Nausėda identified the drone shot down over central Lithuania as a Russian Gerbera model, saying it was of a type used by Russia and most likely had been targeting Ukraine before straying into Lithuanian airspace, possibly after being knocked off course by Ukrainian electronic warfare.
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first by Meduza EN, 8d ago
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1 outlet first by Moscow Times EN, 8d ago · read ↗
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NATO fighter jets shot down a drone over Lithuania overnight into September 15. President Gitanas Nausėda said preliminary data suggested the Russian Gerbera was meant to attack Ukraine but was diverted by Ukrainian electronic warfare. https:// meduza.io/en/news/2026/09/16/u…
2 more of the top 3 · 9 posts in this stretch
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They weren't losing much in the last year of the war. They basically sweeped the Germans once Operation Bagration started and losses were minimal given the scale of the operation. Once Berlin/Germany fell, getting to the English Channel would have been easy going considering it would have been 18 y.o. conscripts/elderly (which is what the…
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RTÉ News Drone shot down by NATO fighter jets over Lithuania Read more here! https://www. rte.ie/news/europe/2026/0915/1 591564-drone-lithuania-nato/ Drone shot down by NATO fighter jets over Lithuania NATO fighter jets shot down a drone over Lithuania, the Baltic state's president said today, in the latest security incident on the alliance's…
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Poland again scrambles jets, shuts airports amid Russian strikes
Poland closed airports and issued air raid alerts for the Lublin and Podkarpackie regions while scrambling fighter jets during another Russian drone attack on Ukraine.
“We have seen Russia's dangerous, reckless full display past 48 hours. And one thing is very clear. Putin will not stop unless he's stopped. So as Russia is willing to take greater risks, Europe must impose a greater cost.”
— Kaja Kallas, EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs · source -
1 outlet first by Kyiv Independent, 8d ago · read ↗
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A drone was shot down in Lithuania by a NATO jet. It is unknown from where the drone was launched, but it's the latest in a series of incursions and sabotage attacks across Europe.
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Disinformation follows latest Russia-linked drone incident in Poland A suspected Russian drone crossed from Belarus into Lithuanian airspace this week before continuing into Russia’s Kaliningrad exclave, and a second drone following the same route the next night was shot down by an Italian fighter jet flying NATO’s Baltic Air Policing mission…
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Vilnius Airport briefly suspends flights over new radar contact
Hours after the overnight interception, Lithuania suspended flights at Vilnius Airport when an unidentified object was detected; NATO jets were scrambled but no dangerous object was found and flights resumed.
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JUST IN: 🇱🇹 Lithuania has suspended flights at Vilnius Airport after an unidentified object was detected in the area. The Lithuanian Air Force is working to identify it. This comes just hours after NATO fighter jets shot down a drone that entered Lithuanian airspace overnight.
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Dear Editor-in-Chief @katharineviner.bsky.social @theguardian.com, Why does the Guardian not amend its style guide? It's not "Nato". It's an acronym: NATO. "Nato" is like abbreviating the Automobile Association to the "Aa". You don't write HMRC as "Hmrc", so why the misnomer with NATO? 🤔
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NATO stands "vigilant, committed and ready," says Lithuania's foreign minister, after an allied fighter jet destroyed a drone that crossed into the country's airspace from Belarus. https://www. euronews.com/my-europe/2026/09 /15/nato-committed-and-ready-after-shooting-down-drone-over-lithuania
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NATO and EU officials call incident deliberate Russian pressure
Lithuania's foreign minister said NATO stood 'vigilant, committed and ready,' while EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas said recent incidents, including the drone and a Russian warship firing flares at a Danish helicopter, were 'not accidents, but calculated,' warning Putin would not stop unless stopped.
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In a first, Italian NATO jets shot down a drone that entered Lithuania from Belarus overnight, Lithuanian officials said. Authorities say it likely carried explosives. It was brought down near a small rural village. https://www. lrt.lt/naujienos/lietuvoje/2/3 052578/nkvc-drono-numusimo-vietoje-ivestas-planas-skydas-apziurimos-surinktos-nuolauzos
2 more of the top 3 · 6 posts in this stretch
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Depends. Žemaitaitis have said that he would collaborate and would help the occupiers to round up the Conservative party members.
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KYIV POST: NATO Jets Shoot Down Drone Over Lithuania https://www. kyivpost.com/post/84520 NATO fighter jets destroyed a drone over Lithuania in the latest security incident along the alliance’s eastern flank, while Poland launched preventive aviation operations during renewed Russian attacks on Ukraine. # Ukraine # World # EasternEurope # Europe
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NATO jets shoot down drone that entered Lithuania from Belarus
Overnight, Italian NATO fighter jets operating alongside Lithuanian pilots destroyed a drone that had crossed into Lithuanian airspace from Belarus and was tracked for about 30 minutes near residential areas before being downed close to the village of Pratkūnai. Authorities said it likely carried explosives.
“A drone that just entered Lithuanian airspace was destroyed by NATO fighter jets. I thank Allied personnel for their swift response.”
— Gitanas Nausėda -
29 outlets first by BBC, 9d ago · also Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, The Canberra Times, Anadolu Agency, Mercury News, Philadelphia Inquirer, Channel News Asia +22 · read ↗
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10 outlets Drone shot down by NATO over Lithuania
first by The Hindu, 9d ago · also Daily Sabah, CTV News, Toronto Star, CBC, Al Jazeera, Straits Times +3
5 more headlines
- NATO downs suspected Russian drone over Lithuania Daily Sabah · 9d ago
- NATO jets shoot down drone over Lithuania and Russian ship fires flares at Danish helicopter CTV News · 9d ago
- NATO fighter jet shoots down drone over Lithuania CBC · 9d ago
- NATO jet shoots down suspected Russian drone over Lithuania Al Jazeera · 9d ago
- Drone shot down in Lithuania was likely aimed at Ukraine, Lithuanian president says Straits Times · 8d ago
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A drone that just entered Lithuanian airspace was destroyed by NATO fighter jets. I thank Allied personnel for their swift response. With Russia intensifying its aggression against Ukraine, such readiness is vital for our region. Together with our NATO Allies, Lithuania will
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BREAKING NATO fighter jets have shot down a drone over Lithuania, says the country's President Gitanas Nauseda
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A drone entered # Lithuanian airspace from Belarus and flew across NATO territory to Kaliningrad late last night. Terrorist aggressor russia is testing the countries air defense layers. https://www. uawire.org/suspected-drone-cro sses-lithuania-into-kaliningrad # poland # eu # europeanunion # Ukraine # news # uk # Germany # France
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- 1 day quiet
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Lithuania closes airspace over suspected drone, then finds birds
Lithuania summoned NATO jets after a suspected drone sighting near an airport, but authorities later determined the object was a flock of birds.
“As the saying goes back home, "Fear has big eyes." Lithuania realizes it backed the wrong horse—and that it will inevitably be held accountable for it. Now, it trembles at the sight of a flock of birds.”
— cmrd_msr, Reddit commenter · source -
first by Independent UK, 11d ago · also Reuters, The Times of Israel, Straits Times, Sky News
3 more headlines
- Lithuania says drone sighting turns out to be flock of birds, after NATO summons jets Reuters · 11d ago
- Lithuania closes Vilnius airport, NATO summons jets in response to possible drone The Times of Israel · 11d ago
- Drone alert over Lithuania turns out to be flock of birds - as NATO jet scrambled Sky News · 11d ago
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first by The Independent, 10d ago
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https://www. europesays.com/3248690/ Drone Sighting Sparks Airport Closure in Lithuania # airspace # drone # Invasion # Lietuva # lithuania # Marathon # NATO # naujienos # Russia # security # sighting # Vilnius
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"Indoor plumbing is an inconvenience" Not even trying to be a developed country. Finland has an almost identical share of rural population to russia but only .3% of their population lacks indoor plumbing.
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https://www. europesays.com/3248739/ Lithuania closes Vilnius airport, NATO summons jets in response to possible drone | WKZO | Everything Kalamazoo # Europe
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Poland scrambles jets over Russian drone strikes on Ukraine
Poland's Operational Command said Polish military aircraft began operating in Polish airspace around 04:19 as Russian drones attacked Ukraine, part of a recurring pattern of precautionary scrambles.
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2 outlets first by The Independent, 10d ago · also Independent UK · read ↗
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NEW: 🇵🇱 Poland has once again scrambled its fighter jets in response to another Russian drone attack on Ukraine overnight. Poland’s Operational Command said Polish military aircraft began operating in Polish airspace at around 04:19, as Russian drones were attacking Ukrainian
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Also covered reported alongside — the timeline has no entry for these yet
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first by The Gateway Pundit, 9d ago
1 more headline
- Nato fighter jets destroy mystery drone in Lithuania Metro.co.uk · 9d ago
and 4 smaller pieces
What people are saying 12 voices from 3 sites · best of 52 · verbatim
- Sep 18
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Lol. US did not produce more machine guns or munitions. But the fact of the matter is that without Lend Lease the Soviets would have still won the war - this is historically recognized and is basically consensus amongst WW2 historians
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The pact was a non-aggression pact. Did you know that even before that Pact between Hitler and Stalin, there was another pact signed between Hitler and the Democracies of France and Britain to divide Europe and start WW2? Its called the Munich Pact
- Sep 15
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a developed individual should understand what's right and what's wrong Even if I give you the benefit of doubt and not read this as condescending, I really don't think this is appropriate. A developed individual also understands that everything isn't black and white, you generally do what seems best and later correct if necessary. A developed…
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🔴 BREAKING NATO Shoots Down Drone Over Lithuania A NATO fighter jet intercepted and shot down a drone in southern Lithuania shortly after midnight on Tuesday. The incident is believed to have been launched by Russia, marking a direct confrontation involving NATO airspace and Russian assets. 📰 https://www. aljazeera.com/video/newsfeed/2…
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🔴 BREAKING NATO Reports Increased Russian Provocations in Baltic Airspace NATO reported two recent incidents: Lithuanian fighter jets shot down a drone entering their airspace, and a Danish helicopter was fired upon with flares while surveilling a Russian frigate in the Baltic Sea. These events suggest Moscow is testing NATO's boundaries…
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UPDATE: 🇱🇹 Lithuania has clarified that the temporary closure of Vilnius Airport was triggered by radar contacts initially believed to potentially be drones. NATO fighter jets were scrambled to identify the objects, but no dangerous objects were found, and the fighters returned
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NATO fighter jets shot down a drone in Lithuanian airspace overnight. Officials said it likely entered from Belarus and may have been carrying explosives, while Russian strikes continued across Ukraine. https:// english.mathrubhumi.com/news/w orld/nato-jets-shoot-down-drone-lithuania-airspace-ygk7617s?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=mastodon # NATO…
- Sep 14
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🔴 BREAKING NATO Jets Shoot Down Drone Violating Lithuanian Airspace NATO fighter jets shot down a drone near Pratkunai village in Lithuania after it entered from Belarus. This incident follows Poland retrieving a suspected Russian drone, escalating tensions and highlighting airspace violations in the region amid ongoing... 📰 https://www…
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NATO fighter jets shot down a drone that entered Lithuanian airspace overnight near Kaunas. Authorities believe the drone likely originated from Belarus. The interception was carried out by Lithuanian and Italian NATO pilots. https://www. bbc.com/news/articles/cjx2zgk7 edlzo # Ukraine # Russia # EU # Lithuania
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LITHUANIA BREAKING NEWS 🇱🇹 A drone that just entered Lithuanian airspace was destroyed by NATO fighter jets. I thank Allied personnel for their swift response.
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A drone has been shot down by NATO fighter jets over Lithuania, according to Lithuania's president. The drone reportedly entered Lithuania from Belarus -LRT
- Sep 13
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Doesn't matter. The fear indoctrination was succesful. Millions will see the airport closure and drone news, thousands will see the follow up birds news.