Overview
- Lithuania’s military says a Su-30 fighter and an Il-78 tanker crossed near Kybartai by about 700 meters for roughly 18 seconds.
- Spanish Eurofighter Typhoons assigned to NATO’s Baltic Air Policing launched in response and are patrolling the area.
- Vilnius summoned a representative of Russia’s embassy after President Gitanas Nausėda called the flight an egregious breach of international law.
- Russia’s Defense Ministry denied any border crossing, describing the sorties as routine training over Kaliningrad.
- German Chancellor Friedrich Merz called the episode a deliberate provocation and said he expects NATO to examine it, citing a recent pattern of incursions and the alliance’s Eastern Sentry posture.