Lithuania tightens security after warning of possible Russian infrastructure attacks

Lithuania has intelligence indicating Russia is planning attacks on infrastructure, and President Gitanas Nauseda ordered tighter security around energy and transport sites as a precaution. He said the warning did not identify when or where any strike might happen, and he did not say Lithuania itself was the target.

Nauseda said the signals came from intelligence services while the Russian side was still in the planning stage. The risk could include actions meant to physically damage critical infrastructure and shut down energy or transport facilities. The intelligence suggested possible provocations in Poland or the Baltic states aimed at testing NATO’s unity, with Russia potentially preparing limited strikes using conventional or other means.

Lithuania borders Russia’s Kaliningrad exclave and Belarus, and it has sharply expanded defense spending since Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022. Its 2026 defense budget was approved at 5.38% of gross domestic product, or about 4.79 billion euros.

Vilnius has already begun reinforcing strategic sites. Lithuania has deployed up to 30 troops to help protect facilities including the Klaipėda LNG terminal, the LitPol Link interconnection with Poland, an Alytus transformer substation, the Kruonis pumped-storage hydroelectric plant and the Klaipėda liquid energy products terminal.

The Associated Press tallied 145 cases of sabotage and disruption that Western officials blame on Russia since 2022, while a RUSI paper says Moscow’s sabotage campaign has increasingly targeted NATO civilian infrastructure and logistics. Lithuania’s foreign ministry also summoned a Russian diplomat on July 8 over Russia’s attacks on Ukraine and a continuing disinformation campaign against the Baltic states.