Wreckage of Drone That Crashed in Latvia Found Near Alūksne After Week-Long Gap

Latvia's National Armed Forces have found the wreckage of a drone that came down on Latvian territory, the military announced on Saturday 24 October. The debris was discovered in the Alūksne district.

According to the Latvian military, the unmanned aerial vehicle most likely crossed into Latvian airspace on 18 October. The information was reported by European Pravda, citing the armed forces.

The incident first drew attention after a report of a noise resembling an explosion. In response, the National Armed Forces and the State Police began looking for a possible crash site. That search was called off after two days, because the information available at the time was not enough to establish what had happened.

Authorities say an investigation into the circumstances of the event is now underway. An internal review has also been launched to assess how the incident unfolded and the factors surrounding it.

The military stressed that no civilians were hurt. Civilian infrastructure was not damaged, and officials have not identified any further threats.

The discovery comes in the wake of a similar episode in a neighboring country. On Sunday 18 October, the wreckage of a suspected drone that had violated airspace was found in the village of Juodžionys, in the Pasvalys district of Lithuania. Lithuania says that drone entered its airspace from Poland.

Lithuanian Prime Minister Mindaugas Sinkevičius stated that the drone which flew into Lithuania on that Sunday contained explosives.

Heorhii Tykhyi, spokesman for Ukraine's Ministry of Foreign Affairs, said the Lithuanian incident was likely the result of Russian electronic warfare measures. He added that Ukraine expressed regret over what happened.