Emergency Drone Alert in Vilnius: Lithuania's Leaders Seek Shelter

Mon Jun 01 2026 18:25:05 GMT+0000 (Coordinated Universal Time)

Amid rising tensions, Lithuania's president and prime minister were forced to take shelter during a drone alert that halted city activities and led to an evacuation of the parliament.

On Tuesday, Lithuania's capital, Vilnius, was thrown into chaos when an air alert prompted President Gitanas Nauseda and Prime Minister Inga Ruginiene to seek safety in shelters. The alert, caused by a drone incursion from neighboring Belarus, led to the suspension of flights and travel restrictions. Military jets were deployed, but the drone's origin remains unconfirmed. This incident follows a series of drone incursions over NATO countries in the region.

Lithuania's president and prime minister were forced to take shelter on Tuesday, when a drone alert caused the capital Vilnius to come to a standstill.

President Gitanas Nauseda and Prime Minister Inga Ruginiene were taken to emergency shelters following the air alert, which ordered the city's population to take cover.

Flights were suspended and road and rail travel briefly ground to a halt. The alert has since been lifted. It is not yet clear who was behind the incursion.

It came a day after Estonia said NATO shot down a drone over its territory, which it suspected was a Ukrainian projectile knocked off course by Russian electronic interference.

The latest alert is part of a string of drone incursions that have troubled NATO member states Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania.

An alert from Lithuania's defence ministry stated: Immediately take shelter in a safe place, take care of your close ones, await new recommendations. The national crisis management center indicated that the alert was in response to a drone in Belarus flying towards Lithuania.

The drone's origin has not been confirmed, with Lithuania's military later stating that NATO jets were deployed but were unable to locate it. Reports indicate that an evacuation order was issued at Lithuania's Seimas (parliament), with parliamentarians being directed to a basement shelter.

This incident follows recent tensions, as highlighted by the drone shot down by a NATO fighter jet in Estonia and Ukraine's accusations against Russia for interfering with Ukrainian drone operations.

Last week, a series of drone incidents over the Baltic states prompted increased scrutiny, with Moscow alleging that these states are allowing Ukraine to use their air corridors for strikes within Russia, a claim denied by the Baltic nations.

In the broader context, these drone incursions align with Ukraine’s escalating drone and missile attacks against targets in Russia, reflecting the ongoing tensions since Russian President Vladimir Putin's full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022.

On Wednesday, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov indicated that Russia is closely monitoring the situation and formulating a response to such drone incursions.