Lithuania urges NATO to shoot down Russian drones entering Alliance territory, reports LRT.

Lithuanian Defense Minister Laurynas Kasčiūnas has called for changes to NATO’s air patrol mission in the Baltic states following the recent downing of a Russian military drone in Latvia.

“The air patrol should not only monitor, but also, when necessary, speed up NATO’s decision-making process so that planes can take off immediately and destroy drones,” Kasčiūnas said.

He emphasized that if radar detects a potential drone entering NATO territory, the information must be quickly relayed to NATO headquarters.

“The NATO headquarters evaluates whether the drone is an enemy craft or another aircraft that went off course, and then quickly decides to launch air patrols. This process needs to be faster,” Kasčiūnas explained.

When asked about Lithuania’s response if Russian drones violate its airspace, the Defense Minister stressed that any decision to shoot down a drone should be made collectively.