Expert: Drone over Vilnius could be Lukashenko acting for Kremlin

Security and defense expert and former officer of the Lithuanian Special Operations Forces, Aurimas Navys, expressed this opinion in an exclusive comment to Ukrinform.

"We should have jammed the drone or shot it down with air defense measures. The fact that we did not do so shows that we have no real, functioning protocols to engage air threats under our current legislation. We still dream of peace and hope that we are at peace—even when discussing unconventional or hybrid warfare, we refuse to act as though we are facing a real enemy: ruzzia," Navys said.

He noted that the violation of Lithuanian airspace by an unknown drone could also be linked to the appearance of the country's Defense Minister, Dovilė Šakalienė, on Fox News in the U.S., when, in response to a journalist's question about negotiations with Russia, she quoted Al Capone: “You can get much further with a kind word and a gun than you can with a kind word alone”.

“She warned that Russia is continuing to build up its military and has imperial expansion plans, while at the same time, firmly stated that if Russia violated any ceasefire, the response must be “immediate and violent.” So, given the logic of the Kremlin, this incident is not surprising," the security expert emphasized.

Navys also stressed that this is not the first drone to fly into Lithuania from Belarus in July.

The security and defense expert has not ruled out that the latest drone launch over Vilnius could have been the idea of Belarus' self-proclaimed President Aleksandr Lukashenko.

"I think it could be a move by Lukashenko. A day or two ago, he claimed that Poland and Lithuania are starting to pose a threat to Belarus and that he is considering moving the Zapad exercises closer to the NATO border. However, I really do not think Lukashenko would make any move without the Kremlin’s endorsement and that means that even if that was perpetrated by Belarusians, the root cause is in Moscow," Navys said.

Ukrinform reported that on July 28, an unidentified drone violated Lithuanian airspace, flying in from Belarus.

After the drone incident, Lithuania will strengthen its border with an extra Air Defense Force and an acoustic system.