Reuters
Lithuania is planning defences against military drones at a key future power grid substation linking the Baltic states with western Europe in an area that intelligence sources say Russia could target with a false flag attack.
The construction plans include fencing strong enough to resist an explosives-laden truck, sensors searching for possible tunnels dug by hostile actors, and concrete "sarcophagi" for transformers to withstand any drone attack, Litgrid CEO Andrius Semeskevicius told Reuters.
"Previously, when designing our grid, we planned for natural disasters. Now, we think about all possible hybrid and non-hybrid threats", he said in an interview.
The Gizai substation, to be built some 30 km (19 miles) west of the Russian exclave of Kaliningrad, will be the first new installation in the region since Russia launched its full-blown invasion of Ukraine in 2022. It will be part of a key grid section being built to ensure steady power supply to the Baltic states in case of a wider conflict.
Its route through a section of Poland and Lithuania squeezed between Russia and its ally Belarus -- the so-called Suwalki Gap -- has long caused security concerns within the NATO military alliance, of which Warsaw and Vilnius are both members.
Such concerns increased this month after a series of sabotage attacks against Germany's electricity grid that Berlin blamed on Moscow. Russia denied any involvement.
Intelligence sources told Reuters last month the region is worried about a false flag drone attack by Russia to test NATO unity. A false flag attack is an operation designed to deceive people about who is actually responsible for carrying it out.
The construction plans include fencing strong enough to resist an explosives-laden truck, sensors searching for possible tunnels dug by hostile actors, and concrete "sarcophagi" for transformers to withstand any drone attack, Litgrid CEO Andrius Semeskevicius told Reuters.
"Previously, when designing our grid, we planned for natural disasters. Now, we think about all possible hybrid and non-hybrid threats", he said in an interview.
The Gizai substation, to be built some 30 km (19 miles) west of the Russian exclave of Kaliningrad, will be the first new installation in the region since Russia launched its full-blown invasion of Ukraine in 2022. It will be part of a key grid section being built to ensure steady power supply to the Baltic states in case of a wider conflict.
Its route through a section of Poland and Lithuania squeezed between Russia and its ally Belarus -- the so-called Suwalki Gap -- has long caused security concerns within the NATO military alliance, of which Warsaw and Vilnius are both members.
Such concerns increased this month after a series of sabotage attacks against Germany's electricity grid that Berlin blamed on Moscow. Russia denied any involvement.
Intelligence sources told Reuters last month the region is worried about a false flag drone attack by Russia to test NATO unity. A false flag attack is an operation designed to deceive people about who is actually responsible for carrying it out.
