On July 16, Lithuania’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs lodged a formal protest with Belarus, delivering a note to the country’s chargé d’affaires following an incursion into Lithuanian airspace by a drone the previous week, LRT.lt reported on July 17.

A Russian-made Gerbera drone entered Lithuanian airspace from Belarus and crashed about one kilometre inside Lithuania, close to the closed Šumskas border checkpoint. The drone, which was not equipped with any weaponry, reportedly crashed roughly one kilometre inside the Lithuanian borders.

In its protest, the Ministry urged Belarus to “urgently clarify the circumstances of this breach and implement steps to avoid a recurrence.”

The drone was identified as a Gerbera, a Russian multi-purpose unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) constructed from plywood and foam, sometimes used to mimic the appearance of Shahed-type loitering munitions.

Foreign Minister Kestutis Budrys told LRT TV he linked the violation to regional military activity, suggesting that intensified Russian drone and missile operations in Ukraine may be increasing the risk of such incidents elsewhere. 

He pointed out that Ukrainian forces use electronic countermeasures to interfere with Russian drones, which sometimes end up over Belarusian territory, and occasionally cross into Lithuania as well, due to the scale of hostilities.

Lithuanian officials later clarified that such drones are often used as decoys to confuse air defense systems but can also serve reconnaissance or electronic warfare roles

According to Lithuania’s military, the drone remained in the country’s airspace for around three minutes before impact. 

The breach heightened concerns over the spillover of hostilities from the Russia-Ukraine war into NATO territory, echoing prior incidents involving stray drones entering Poland, Latvia, or Romania.