Lithuania says it cannot rule out that Russia aimed at its diplomats. After Russian missiles damaged Lithuania's embassy in Kyiv, Foreign Minister Kęstutis Budrys did not exclude that Moscow deliberately targeted diplomatic missions, LRT reports.
What raises the minister's suspicion is that no military object stands near the embassy to explain the strike. The investigation confirmed missiles hit the site, and the only object Russia repeatedly tries to strike nearby is a power station a kilometer and a half away, with everything else in the area residential apart from the embassy, Budrys said.
"This version also cannot be excluded, although for now we cannot state it for certain," he said of deliberate targeting.
The strike used anti-ship missiles on a district with no military targets
Budrys pointed to the weapon as one of the things that puzzles him. Russia fired hypersonic "Zircon" missiles at the capital, weapons originally developed to hit ships, he said, calling them a terrifying weapon and adding, "We have no idea what they were aiming at there, because there is nothing in that area."
The damage was close. Two missiles fell 5 and 150 meters from the embassy in Kyiv's Pechersk district, damaging window frames, shattering glass, and piercing the roof and solar panels, though no embassy staff was hurt, according to Lithuania's Foreign Ministry.
Lithuania protested, and Russia offered a threat instead of an apology
Lithuania summoned Russia's representative in Vilnius over the strike. It lodged a strong protest over a gross violation of the 1961 Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations and said it will demand compensation from Moscow, reserving the right to respond.
Russia gave no apology. Its representative said Lithuania had been warned of a threat to everyone in Kyiv, which Lithuania regards as a threat in itself, Budrys said.
"Resolve has not decreased but grown," he said of the strike's effect.
The minister wants a firmer NATO response
Budrys tied the strike to a wider pattern on NATO's eastern flank. He said NATO must react more decisively after a Russian missile fell in eastern Poland last week, strengthening its military presence and taking a stronger political line. The Eastern Sentry and Baltic Sentry operations showed that reinforcing the military presence forces Russia to hold back, he argued, and the same firm response should follow now.
