Lithuania's president, prime minister, and top officials were rushed to bunkers and safe locations on Wednesday after a suspected unidentified drone was detected near the Belarus border. An air alert was announced in the capital, Vilnius, marking the first mobile phone "take shelter" alert issued in an EU and Nato country since the start of Russia's 2022 full-scale invasion of Ukraine.
Residents of Vilnius were urged by the army to immediately seek shelter in safe places and take care of their close ones. The alert led to the suspension of air and train traffic in and around the city, while schools and kindergartens were instructed to move children to shelters.
The incident occurred one day after Nato shot down a suspected stray Ukrainian drone over Estonia. While Nato and the EU have warned that Russia is diverting Ukraine's drones, Lithuanian authorities reported that they have received no notifications of drones crashing in their territory. The drone alert in Lithuania has since been lifted.