Russian aircraft enter Lithuanian airspace, NATO jets scramble

Two Russian military aircraft entered Lithuanian airspace for about 18 seconds on Thursday evening, Lithuanian officials said, prompting NATO jets to scramble and Lithuania to summon a Russian diplomatic representative in protest. The incursion, which Lithuanian authorities said began at roughly 6 p.m., involved a Su-30 fighter and an Il-78 refueling tanker that flew about 700 meters into Lithuanian territory from the Russian exclave of Kaliningrad before turning back.

The Lithuanian armed forces said the planes remained over national territory for roughly 18 seconds. Two Spanish Eurofighter Typhoon jets deployed as part of NATO’s Baltic Air Policing mission were scrambled and patrolled the area in response. President Gitanas Nausėda called the crossing "a blatant breach of international law and territorial integrity of Lithuania" and the foreign ministry summoned the Russian chargé d’affaires to convey a formal protest. There was no immediate comment from Moscow.

Lithuanian military officials said the incursion likely occurred during refueling training conducted over Kaliningrad Oblast, a heavily militarized Russian exclave that borders Lithuania and Poland. Lithuanian Prime...