19 June 2026

Lithuania’s State Security Department warned today that minors are being recruited into criminal networks through social media and encrypted messaging apps. Children are promised quick money and then pressured into carrying messages, photographing targets or carrying out dangerous tasks.

In the Baltic Sea, Lithuanian naval units destroyed a 300 kg explosive charge during BALTOPS 2026. The exercise runs through tomorrow and involves more than 50 warships, over 25 aircraft and more than 9,000 troops from 17 countries. Parliament has already cleared the way for up to 40 Lithuanian troops and specialists to join US-requested missions in the Strait of Hormuz, including mine-clearing, security and reconnaissance roles. The presidency also said rotations of visiting US troops in Lithuania could be larger than before.

In foreign policy, Kęstutis Budrys said in Vilnius yesterday that the EU should be preparing its 21st sanctions package rather than debating a format for talks with Moscow. Lithuania wants the next package to include Rosatom and Lukoil. In business, a Lithuanian manufacturer signed an exclusive deal to produce drones for Ukraine in the thousands, while Vilnius secured a symbolic international win as the headquarters of the International Design Council is moved to the city.

In crime, police asked for help in the search for a 16-year-old missing in the Vilnius district since December. In Ireland, a Lithuanian citizen suspected of planning a terrorist act also drew attention after searches of his home uncovered substantial findings.

Lithuania's Presidential Office said positive signals from Washington suggest the rotation of U.S. troops in Lithuania could be larger than before. Sarunas Jasikevicius won the Turkish league with Fenerbahce, matching a feat previously achieved by Zeljko Obradovic.

Russian strikes killed civilians in Odesa region and Pavlohrad on Friday, and officials in Pavlohrad have confirmed three deaths and at least 10 injuries, including a child, from an earlier attack. In Odesa region, the strikes damaged homes, a grocery shop and a Nova Poshta branch.

Kharkiv came under fresh Russian KAB guided-bomb strikes on Thursday, and local officials said children were among the wounded. More than 40 homes were damaged in the city and the wider Kharkiv region as rescue crews continued working after the latest hits. In the Black Sea, Russian drones damaged two civilian cargo ships sailing through Ukraine’s maritime corridor under Panamanian and Barbadian flags. One vessel was carrying metal toward the Greater Odesa ports, while the other was leaving Ukraine with a wheat cargo, and the crew extinguished a fire on board.

Volodymyr Zelenskiy on Wednesday urged Ukrainians to stay united after Sergei Lavrov said weapons, not talks, would decide the war. Zelenskiy also said Ukraine would need fuel and at least 300 missiles if the war lasts into winter. Over the past 24 hours, Ukrainian drones struck the Moscow region again, and Russian officials confirmed a fire at a major oil refinery and a temporary disruption at the site.

The European Union on Thursday extended sanctions on Russia for another year. The Kremlin-backed luxury car project Aurus also suffered a new legal and commercial setback in Europe, leaving it without a clear route into the EU market.

A Ukrainian drone strike halted the Moscow oil refinery, while Russian attacks killed two people in Ukraine’s Dnipropetrovsk region. Volodymyr Zelensky gave Belarus one week to stop supplying drone-navigation equipment to Russia.

Israeli defence minister Israel Katz said yesterday that troops could use full force in Lebanon after four Israeli soldiers were killed in the south, including air and ground attacks. Lebanon’s civil defence said today that at least three people were killed after Israeli strikes hit the Gobeiry area south of Beirut. Hezbollah said it had destroyed Israeli tanks in the south, and Lebanese officials expect more strikes as both sides accuse each other of violating the border truce.

The White House late yesterday cancelled Vice President JD Vance’s trip to Switzerland, where he had been due to lead a new round of nuclear talks with Iran. That decision left it unclear whether weekend negotiations will go ahead after an earlier push to link a war-ending arrangement with curbs on Iran’s nuclear work. In the wider conflict, Iran had previously fired ballistic missiles and drones toward Kuwait and Bahrain, and U.S. forces struck Iranian coastal radar sites near the Strait of Hormuz.

In Pornainen, Finland, Polar Night Energy yesterday marked the first year of operation for what it calls the world’s largest sand battery. The system stores heat from cheap wind and solar power in crushed soapstone waste and has helped cover part of the town’s district heating demand in winter. Canada’s team set several records at the World Championship over the past day, producing one of its strongest results outside Europe.

Lebanese state media said Israel carried out a strike in the south after a ceasefire announcement. The World Health Organization said more than 70 health workers in the Democratic Republic of Congo have been infected with Ebola.