维尔纽斯 – 立陶宛总统和其他国防官员表示，一架疑似无人机在触发警报后于10月18日上午在立陶宛上空爆炸，迫使北部和中部地区的居民在一小时内寻求庇护。
VILNIUS – A suspected drone exploded over Lithuania after triggering an alert that forced residents in northern and central areas to seek shelter for an hour on the morning of Oct 18, the president and other defence officials said.
乌克兰外交部后来表示，对立陶宛领空的这一事件感到遗憾，并补充说，这可能是由于俄罗斯的电子战干扰导致无人机偏离航道。
Ukraine’s Foreign Ministry said later it regretted the incident in Lithuania’s airspace, adding that it may have resulted from Russian electronic warfare diverting drones off course.
立陶宛国防部长罗伯塔斯·考纳斯向记者表示，该物体是从波兰飞入立陶宛领空的，并在提出与波兰方面开展联合调查之后作出此番表态。
The object flew into Lithuania’s airspace from Poland, Lithuanian Defence Minister Robertas Kaunas told reporters, after proposing a joint investigation to his Polish counterpart.
“俄罗斯对乌克兰的侵略战争正在向北约和欧盟的东翼蔓延，”立陶宛总统吉塔纳斯·瑙塞达表示，“看来是一架无人机在该国北部上空爆炸，对平民人口构成危险，”他补充道。波兰军方表示，也在核实一个未知物体可能侵犯其领空的情况。
“Russia’s war of aggression against Ukraine is spilling over onto the Eastern flank of NATO and EU,” Lithuanian President Gitanas Nauseda said on“What appears to be a drone exploded over the northern part of the country, posing a danger to the civilian population,” he added. Poland’s military said it was also verifying a possible violation of its airspace by an unidentified object.
波兰国防部发言人后来表示，雷达系统未能确认该物体越境进入立陶宛，但补充说，波兰当局仍在与立陶宛官员保持联系。
A Polish Defence Ministry spokesperson later said radar systems did not confirm the object crossing the border into Lithuania, but added that Polish authorities were remaining in contact with Lithuanian officials.
危机管理中心表示，在“红色”警报期间，北约空中警察战机被紧急起飞至该地区，靠近立陶宛第二大城市的考纳斯机场临时关闭。
During the “red” alert, NATO air police fighters were scrambled to the area and Kaunas airport, near Lithuania’s second-largest city, was temporarily closed, the crisis management centre said.
中心表示，由于天气多云，北约飞机未能目视识别该物体，也未尝试将其击落。
The NATO aircraft were unable to visually identify the object due to cloudy weather and did not attempt to shoot it down, the centre said.
中心表示，该物体从雷达上消失后，立陶宛军方人员正在北部朱奥兹尼斯村附近调查可能的无人机碎片。考纳斯表示，部分碎片击中了一辆平民车辆。
Lithuanian army personnel were investigating possible drone debris near Juodzionys village in northern Lithuania, after the object disappeared from radar, the centre said. Some of the debris struck a civilian vehicle, Kaunas said.
“一位北约官员表示，‘我们可以确认，今天早些时候，两架意大利“台风”战斗机因应立陶宛上空的无人机而被紧急起飞。’”“这些飞机是在北约指挥下运行的。调查仍在进行中，北约正与立陶宛当局保持密切联系，”该官员表示，并补充说，北约已做好准备并具备应对任何潜在威胁的能力。
“We can confirm that two Italian Eurofighter jets were scrambled earlier today in response to a drone over Lithuanian airspace,” a NATO official said. “The aircraft were operating under NATO command. An investigation is ongoing, and NATO remains in close contact with the Lithuanian authorities,” the official said, adding that the alliance was ready and able to react to any potential threat.
北邻拉脱维亚曾在与立陶宛接壤的部分地区短暂发布“黄色”空中警报，理由是存在“可能的威胁”，拉脱维亚军方表示。
Northern neighbour Latvia briefly issued a “yellow” air warning in some regions bordering Lithuania, citing a “possible threat”, Latvia’s army said.
在最近几个月里，乌克兰无人机多次进入波罗的海地区的北约领空。基辅表示，这些无人机是因俄罗斯信号干扰而偏离航线。
Ukrainian drones have repeatedly entered NATO airspace in the Baltic region in recent months. Kyiv has said they were steered off course by Russian signal jamming.
这引发了人们对俄罗斯在乌克兰的战争可能蔓延至北约边界的担忧。
This has stoked concerns that Russia’s war in Ukraine is spilling over NATO’s borders.