Lithuania has prepared evacuation plans for possible security threats while remaining determined to resist any attack, Prime Minister Mindaugas Sinkevičius has told the BBC.
Speaking to BBC Newsnight, Sinkevičius said people in Lithuania felt under persistent pressure from Russia. He said the country would not surrender if attacked and would respond militarily.
The prime minister said authorities were considering a range of contingencies, some of which were not being publicly discussed in detail. He cited arrangements to move elderly residents out of cities in an orderly way and prevent traffic congestion as an example of the planning involved.
Airspace concerns
Sinkevičius said Lithuania faced tangible threats, although not on a daily basis. His comments came a week after Nato fighter pilots shot down a drone that entered Lithuanian airspace.
The drone’s origin has not been confirmed. However, Lithuanian Defence Minister Robertas Kaunas told BBC Newshour that it had arrived from the direction of Belarus, a neighbouring country described as a key Russian ally. Moscow did not comment on the incident.
UK Defence Secretary Wes Streeting said the actions of Lithuanian and Italian forces showed Nato’s readiness to protect its airspace. He said the alliance remained united in defending all Nato territory.
Nato border state
Lithuania shares a land border with Kaliningrad, the Russian enclave, and joined Nato in 2004 alongside Estonia and Latvia. The three Baltic states are covered by the alliance’s Article 5 provision, under which an armed attack on one member is regarded as an attack on all members.
Military drone incursions have become more common in Europe since Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine began, according to the report. In May, a drone alert in Vilnius briefly halted flights and rail services as residents took shelter. Nato aircraft have also been deployed on several occasions this year to bring down stray Ukrainian drones that crossed into Estonia and Latvia. Ukraine has attributed such incidents to Russian electronic warfare affecting drone flight paths.
Sinkevičius said the United Kingdom needed a change in its approach to defence, while noting that Lithuania was geographically closer to what he described as the threat.
Source: BBC News
