Ukraine war briefing: Call for Nato action after Russian drone intrudes on Lithuania
Russia talking down Medvedev’s influence after nuclear threats; oligarch’s superyacht goes on sale with proceeds to Ukraine. What we know on day 1,260
Lithuania has called for Nato help to boost its air defences after Russian military drones repeatedly violated its airspace. “Last Monday, a Russian military drone violated Lithuanian airspace,” said Kęstutis Budrys, the foreign minister in Vilnius. “This marks the second such incident in less than a month. Similar airspace violations have also been reported recently by other allies.”
Budrys added that he and the defence minister, Dovilė Šakalienė, had asked the Nato secretary general for “immediate measures to enhance air defence capabilities in Lithuania and accelerate the full implementation of the rotational air defence model. Air defence is vital to allied security. Securing Nato’s eastern flank must remain a top priority for the alliance.”
Amid the nuclear row between Donald Trump and Dmitry Medvedev, the Kremlin has moved to play down the latter’s role in Russian decision-making, the
Institute for the Study of War has said. The thinktank said Medvedev was subsequently being portrayed as having a “different assessment” from Putin on nuclear issues. An ISW assessment said: “The Kremlin regularly uses Medvedev to introduce nuclear threats into the Russian and international information spaces.” Medvedev, a high-ranked official who was once prime minister of Russia, as well as a proxy for Putin in the presidency, accused Trump of taking “a step towards war” by tightening an ultimatum for Russia to seek peace. Trump in response said he had moved two nuclear submarines into position “just in case these foolish and inflammatory statements are more than just that”....
