Lithuania: Russia may use captured Ukrainian drones
Lithuanian Defense Minister Robertas Kaunas said Russia is considering the possibility of attacking critical infrastructure in the Baltic region. He said captured Ukrainian drones could be used in such potential operations, but there is no immediate threat at this time.
According to the statement of the Lithuanian Minister of Defense Robertas Kaunas, Russia may be planning attacks on critical infrastructure facilities in the Baltic region.
According to the minister, Lithuanian intelligence indicates that Moscow does not exclude such a scenario. This may be due to the erroneous perception of Russia that the Baltic states have allowed Ukraine to strike Russia from their airspace.
Kaunas noted that in the possible attacks, Russia could use captured Ukrainian drones. By doing so, Moscow may aim to shift responsibility for the attacks to Ukraine, undermine confidence in Kiev and negatively affect the support of NATO countries for Ukraine.
At the same time, Robertas Kaunas noted that there is currently no direct military threat to the Baltic states.
Since the start of Russia's full-scale war in Ukraine, Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia have reported several drone incursions into their airspace. Officials say some of them are Russian, some possibly Ukrainian, and in many cases they have been diverted by Russian electronic warfare.
Such incidents have raised security concerns in the Baltic states, prompting them to beef up their air defenses and anti-drone systems, as well as an expansion of NATO's air policing mission in the region.