15 June 2026

Lithuania’s border guards on Sunday brought down a homemade aircraft-like drone that crossed from Belarus near the Kenos border post in Vilnius district. The same day, officers in Šalčininkai district stopped another such device about 500 metres from the frontier, with no cargo found on it.

Giraitės Ginkluotės Gamykla in Kaunas district has started producing anti-drone ammunition and is pushing ahead with a €26mn second ammunition line. The state-owned plant has so far focused on small-calibre rounds, while broader expansion plans also cover medium-calibre production with Northrop Grumman and Norway’s Nammo.

Social Democrat leader Mindaugas Sinkevičius said he was ready to become prime minister if the party reshapes the governing coalition and replaces part of the cabinet. After deciding to stop working with Nemuno aušra, the party still has to settle a new majority formula, divide ministries and decide what role Inga Ruginienė would keep.

Vilnius Regional Court is due today to deliver its verdict in the Žvėrynas murder case, where a boy born in 2010 is accused of killing his 15-year-old classmate. Prosecutors are seeking a 10-year prison sentence, and investigators found the victim’s remains in a waste container and nearby woodland in Vilnius’s Žvėrynas district.

Lithuania’s temporary diesel excise relief expired today, ending a measure that the finance ministry said cut pump prices by about 6 cents a litre. In health, Lithuania reported its first cancer operation of this kind, while in sport Vilnius-based Žuvėdra won the national men’s field hockey title.

Police in Mažeikiai are also searching for a 12-year-old who disappeared after going out to take the rubbish and had no phone or money with him. In crime, a court handed a harsh sentence to a man convicted over the attempted murder of a police officer in Jonava.

In the Turkish league final, Sarunas Jasikevicius's Fenerbahce won despite the Lithuanian coach being ejected during the game. Late in the evening, Lithuania also learned of two notable deaths: legendary captain Ignas Miniotas and dissident Danute Kersiute-Peceliuniene.

Kyiv came under a Russian overnight attack that killed four people, and flames were seen at the Pechersk Lavra complex in the historic centre. The strikes hit residential and administrative buildings, firefighters were sent to several sites, and residents were evacuated from nearby blocks.

President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said the drones deliberately targeted the monastery quarter in Kyiv’s Pecherskyi district. Religious buildings and nearby housing were damaged, and rescue crews spent the morning checking rubble for anyone trapped. Across Ukraine, Russian strikes over the past day killed at least nine people in total, while dozens more were wounded in several cities, including Kyiv.

The European Union adopted a new package of sanctions against Russia, adding pressure on Moscow after the latest strikes on Ukrainian cities. In southern Ukraine, the earlier attack on the Chonhar bridge remains important context because it is one of Russia's main road links between occupied Crimea and the Kherson region. Repeated Ukrainian drone strikes cut traffic on that supply route and forced military transport onto longer alternatives.

Ukraine has started the process of joining the European Union. At the same time, strikes on Russia’s oil infrastructure have reportedly put roughly a third of the country’s refining capacity out of action.

The United Nations said today that gang violence in Haiti has killed at least 2,300 people this year. Armed groups still control large parts of Port-au-Prince and surrounding areas, more than 1.4 million people have been displaced, and food shortages are worsening as supply routes remain cut.

The United States and Iran agreed today to extend their ceasefire by 60 days, reopen the Strait of Hormuz to shipping and formalise the deal in Switzerland in the coming days. The draft would end the U.S. naval blockade of Iranian ports, while nuclear terms were left to another 60-day round of talks. Brent crude fell more than 4% after the announcement. Donald Trump said yesterday that the world’s shipping fleets should be on standby and that oil must keep flowing after fresh U.S.-Iran strikes.

A Russian strike today set fire to the Dormition Cathedral at Kyiv-Pechersk Lavra, one of Ukraine’s most important Orthodox landmarks. Ukrainian officials said the wider missile and drone barrage on Kyiv killed at least 11 people, and Poland scrambled fighter jets after the attack. Israel’s military said today it plans to keep forces in Lebanon, Syria and Gaza indefinitely. Israeli strikes in Gaza also killed at least six people today.

In Pakistan’s Punjab province, police killed nine-year-old Australian girl Hania Ahmed after firing on her family’s car during a response to an armed robbery call. Her father, Adeel Ahmed, and her brother were wounded, and Australia has demanded a transparent investigation. Ebola is continuing to spread rapidly in Congo. In Sudan, drone strikes killed more than 1,000 people in the first five months of 2026.

A US official said Donald Trump and Iran’s parliamentary speaker electronically signed an agreement. Trump also said the Strait of Hormuz would be fully reopened on Friday. After talks with Volodymyr Zelenskiy and Vladimir Putin, Trump said he would seek a meeting between the two leaders in the United States.