Lithuanian PM says Belarus balloon incidents ‘call for united, resolute response,’ as it closes border with Russia’s ally – as it happened

3.43pm GMT Closing summary … and on that note, it’s a wrap! Lithuania’s prime minister has authorised the shooting down of smuggling balloons that cross the border from Russia’s ally Belarus, calling them “hybrid attacks” in an echo of the term used to describe Moscow’s destabilisation efforts (9:49). Responding to the incidents which forced Vilnius airport to close four times last week, the Lithuanian government has also moved to close the country’s border with Belarus, a move criticised by Minsk as “a provocation” (11:34, 13:40). Lithuania’s PM Inga Ruginienė called for a strong reaction from the EU and Nato, not ruling out Article 4 consultations within the alliance (10:03), warning that “our response will determine how far autocrats dare to go” (13:53). Related: Lithuania says it will shoot down smuggling balloons from Russia’s ally Belarus Elsewhere, An Italian court has approved the extradition of a Ukrainian suspect in the Nord Stream explosion case to Germany, with the man’s lawyer immediately saying he would appeal against the decision to the country’s supreme court (12:12). In the Czech Republic, the country’s president Petr Pavel has tasked the populist billionaire Andrej Babiš with leading talks on forming the new government after recent parliamentary elections (12:23). Over in Spain, the centre-right, pro-independence Junts party has decided to abandon its support for Spain’s socialist-led coalition government of Pedro Sánchez, raising further questions about the stability of the embattled administration (13:58, 14:33). And, finally, Poland has detained two Ukrainians accused of collecting details of soldiers and critical infrastructure for foreign intelligence (10:43) And that’s all from me, Jakub Krupa, for today. If you have any tips, comments or suggestions, email me at jakub.krupa@theguardian.com. I am also on Bluesky at @jakubkrupa.bsky.social and on X at @jakubkrupa. 2.44pm GMT The Netherlands gear up for closely contested election this week It’s also worth keeping an eye on the Netherlands as the country is preparing for a general election on Wednesday, just under two years from the last one, as voters could swap the most rightwing government in the country’s recent history for a more moderate, commonsense coalition. Here is a brief explainer from our Europe correspondent, Jon Henley… Related: The Dutch election: key players and main issues in the snap poll … and some colour on what’s at stake from our European affairs correspondent, Ashifa Kassam. “As polls suggest that Wilders’ party could again emerge with the most votes, the election on 29 October has been recast as a broader litmus test for the country and its democratic ideals. “It isn’t just about Muslims. What’s at stake is the very idea of what it means to be Dutch,” said Esma Kendir of the Collective of Young Muslims. “So will the Netherlands continue to stand for equality, for human rights, for freedom of religion, or will it move towards exclusion and fear?”” Related: ‘Open hostility has become normalised’: Dutch Muslims fear rise of far right as general election looms Prof Cas Mudde has this take on the campaign so far: “Whatever the eventual outcome, one thing is already clear: despite the far right’s evident failure in governing the Netherlands, it retains a magnetic hold over the country. Party politics remains fragmented yet dominated by the mainstreaming and normalisation of far-right frames and politicians. Liberal democratic parties devote more energy to fighting each other than the far right. As far as a cordon sanitaire holds, it does not extend to all far-right parties (like JA21) and rejects its behaviour rather than its ideology. These are trends that we see both in the European parliament and in many other European countries.” Related: Geert Wilders failed in government, but the far right retains its grip on the Netherlands | Cas Mudde 2.20pm GMT Ten people go on trial in Paris for online harassment of Brigitte Macron in Paris Meanwhile over in France, ten people have gone on trial in Paris charged with online harassment of Brigitte Macron – the latest phase in a legal battle on both sides of the Atlantic against the false claim that the French first lady is a man named Jean-Michel Trogneux. The French trial comes after the president, Emmanuel Macron, and his wife filed a defamation lawsuit in the US at the end of July, in connection with a rumour amplified and repeated online that Brigitte Macron was born a man. The Macrons’ US lawsuit attacked what it called the “verifiably false and devastating lies” being repeated online by the rightwing podcaster Candace Owens that Brigitte Macron, 72, was born male. The US lawsuit said evidence clearly disproved this “grotesque narrative”, which had become “a campaign of global humiliation” and “relentless bullying on a worldwide scale”. The French trial for online harassment is separate to the US court action and relates to a legal complaint filed by Brigitte Macron in 2024. Ten defendants – eight men and two women, aged 41 to 60 – are being tried in Paris’s criminal court, accused of online harassment targeting Brigitte Macron. If convicted, they face up to two years in prison. The defendants, who deny all wrongdoing, have been accused of making numerous malicious comments about Brigitte Macron’s gender and sexuality, even equating her age difference with her husband to “paedophilia”, according to prosecutors. The Macrons’ US lawsuit has stated that the accusation that Brigitte Macron was born a man named Jean-Michel Trogneux is completely false and Trogneux is in fact is Brigitte Macron’s 80-year-old brother. He lives in the northern French town of Amiens, where he grew up with Brigitte and four other siblings in a family famous for its local chocolate business. He was present in public alongside Brigitte at Emmanuel Macron’s two presidential inaugurations in 2017 and 2022. The French first lady filed a complaint in Paris in August 2024 that led to an investigation into online harassment and arrests in December 2024 and February 2025. Among the defendants, who have all denied wrongdoing, is Aurélien Poirson-Atlan, 41, a publicist known on social media as “Zoé Sagan” and often linked with conspiracy theory circles. The defendants also include a woman already the subject of a defamation complaint filed by Brigitte Macron in 2022: Delphine J, 51, a self-proclaimed spiritual medium who goes by the pseudonym Amandine Roy. Related: Ten people go on trial in Paris for online harassment of Brigitte Macron 1.33pm GMT Catalan pro-independents abandon support for Spain's socialist-led government in Madrid And, as widely expected, Junts’s executive committee has just decided to abandon its support for Spain’s socialist-led coalition government. Further details are due at a press conference later today, but the next step will be to put the decision to the party’s membership for approval later this week (which it is all but certain to get). It’s hard to say exactly what the decision will mean for the Sánchez administration until we have more information. But a spokesperson for the Spanish Socialist Workers’ party (PSOE), has said the party respects “the internal dynamics of all parties” and continues to offer Junts “an outstretched hand”. There’s no doubt, however, that this will make it even harder for the government to pursue its legislative agenda. But Spain’s culture minister, Ernest Urtasun, who is also a spokesperson for the PSOE’s leftwing junior coalition partners, Sumar, has said he thinks a complete break with the government is not on the cards as it would clear the way for a possible conservative People’s party (PP) government supported by the far-right Vox party. As he points out, such a move would be very hard to justify to the Junts party faithful. “Junts must be very clear that nothing we can do together is possible with a PP and Vox government, nothing,” he told a press conference. “I think that evidently no one in Catalonia, not even Junts’ own voters, would understand any kind of operation in which their party could facilitate the arrival of the PP and Vox.” Updated at 1.40pm GMT 12.58pm GMT Catalan pro-independence party to decide on its support for socialist-led minority government of Spain in Madrid Meanwhile in Spain, the self-exiled former Catalan president Carles Puigdemont will today meet the executive committee of his centre-right, pro-independence Junts party to decide whether the grouping will abandon its parliamentary support for Spain’s socialist-led, minority coalition government. Puigdemont, who led the illegal, unilateral push to secede from Spain eight years ago, supported the return to office of Spain’s prime minister, Pedro Sánchez, following the 2023 general election in return for the introduction of a controversial amnesty law that would apply to all those involved in the failed independence bid. Junts’s seven seats in Spain’s congress – part of the so-called “investiture majority” that put the socialists and their partners in power – have proved key to the enactment of the government’s legislative agenda. But Puigdemont has been careful to extract maximum leverage in return for his support, particularly when it comes to the major planks of the deal he struck with Sánchez: the application of the amnesty law; the official EU status of the Catalan language, and the transfer of immigration powers from the central government to the regional government. Now, however, he and his colleagues feel the PM and his government are not keeping their end of the bargain – not least because Spain’s supreme court has rejected a request to apply the amnesty law to Puigdemont and others because they face specific charges of misuse of public funds, which puts them beyond the law’s scope. The Spanish government’s last-minute attempts to placate Junts last week by beginning bilateral negotiations with Germany to make Catalan an official language of the EU may also have come too late. Whatever Junt’s executive committee decides will then be voted on – and basically rubber-stamped – by party members. Sánchez’s life – which has been far from easy over recent months because of the series of corruption allegations facing his family, party and government – could be about to get even harder… Related: ‘The final countdown’: Spanish PM Pedro Sánchez fights for his political life 12.53pm GMT Belarus balloon incidents 'call for united, resolute response,' Lithuanian PM says Lithuanian prime minister Inga Ruginienė has now also issued a brief statement in English following the national security council meeting earlier today (9:49, 10:03, 11:34). In a post on X, she said: “Autocrats are once again testing the resilience of EU and Nato against hybrid threats. In recent days, dozens of helium balloons from Belarus have entered our airspace – drifting toward major airports and disrupting civil aviation. This calls for a united, resolute response: – Tougher sanctions on Russia and its proxy Belarus; – Activation of EU hybrid response teams & Frontex measures; – Continued isolation of hostile regimes and ensuring they face responsibility for their actions;– Strengthening of capabilities for infrastructure defence. Our response will determine how far autocrats dare to go.” 12.40pm GMT Belarus calls Lithuania's decision to close border 'provocation' Meanwhile, Belarus has responded to the Lithuanian decision to close its borders with the country, calling it “a provocation designed to justify anti-Belarusian policies and expand sanctions,” Russian news agency Tass reported. It added that the border closure had first practical implications with the Belarusian state-owned enterprise Minsktrans canceling several bus routes to Latvia and Lithuania “due to the closure of Lithuanian border crossings.” 12.36pm GMT But over in Budapest, Hungarian foreign minister Péter Szijjártó said Budapest still hopes the US-Russia talks could go ahead in Budapest and reiterated the government was prepared to host them “at any time”, Tass reported. He said he discussed it directly with the US state secretary, Marco Rubio, and expected the topic to come up during Orbán’s visit to see Donald Trump in Washington next week. 12.26pm GMT Hungary's Orbán meets Pope Leo, Italy's Meloni for talks on war in Ukraine Hungarian prime minister Viktor Orbán has met with Pope Leo XVI at the Vatican earlier today for talks that cover a response to the Russian invasion on Ukraine. Orbán, a longstanding critic of the West’s response to the war, said earlier today that he would reiterate his call to end the war, warning that “if we want to preserve the peace of Hungary, we cannot swim with the mainstream of Brussels.” “We want to stay out of the war fever spreading around the world, which is why we have been organising an anti-war coalition since the outbreak of the Russian-Ukrainian war,” he said. His foreign policy stance has been repeatedly criticised by other EU leaders, which accused him of taking pro-Russian positions, but it won him some praise elsewhere. Earlier this month, US president Donald Trump and Russian president Vladimir Putin briefly suggested they could hold another summit to discuss Ukraine in Budapest, Hungary, but the idea is understood to have been shelved for now. Related: US shelves plans for Trump-Putin talks in Budapest Orbán is also expected to meet with the Italian prime minister, Giorgia Meloni, later today. 12.05pm GMT EU 'doing everything we can' to address Ukraine's financial needs after failing to agree to use frozen Russian assets At the midday press briefing, the European Commission has also faced questions over its plans for Ukraine, and whether it was confident that the proposed €140bn reparations loan – backed by Russian frozen assets – could still go ahead after the EU leaders couldn’t agree on it last week. Related: EU leaders fail to agree to use frozen Russian assets to defend Ukraine “We are doing everything we can to indeed address the needs of Ukraine for the next two years, and more than that. As said, and I remind everyone here, the European Council reiterated its commitment to address the pressing financial needs of Ukraine in 2026/2027,” chief spokesperson Paula Pinho said. 11.46am GMT EU 'aware' of Lithuania balloon incidents, in touch with Lithuanian authorities Responding to the latest from Lithuania, EU transport spokesperson Anna-Kaisa Itkonen said the commission was “aware of these incidents” and noted the airport disruptions over the weekend. But she declined to speculate as to the causes of the incident. “We are in close contact with the national authorities in this case, as well as IATA and the relevant authorities who will be able to look into this. But I do not have information to give from here, as regards possible causes or possible other modes of cooperation, but we are very much aware of this, and we do stay in contact with Lithuanian authorities on this.” 11.23am GMT Populist billionaire Babiš formally tasked with leading talks to form new Czech government Meanwhile over in the Czech Republic, the country’s president Petr Pavel has tasked the populist billionaire Andrej Babiš with leading talks on forming the new government after recent parliamentary election. Babiš told the president – who defeated him in the 2023 presidential elections – that the coalition talks were already under way, and “promised to hand over the text of the coalition agreement and programme priorities” later this week, according to a readout issued by the presidential office. In pointed comments, Pavel particularly enquired about the new government’s foreign and security policy positions, and stressed that the new administration “will not in any way weaken the principles of our democratic state,” his office said. Pavel said before the election that he would not appoint any ministers who sought Czech withdrawal from the EU or from Nato. Babiš also reportedly promised to “resolve the conflicts of interest” before his possible appointment as the Czech Republic’s next prime minister, the readout said. Final results of the election held early this month showed Babiš’s ANO won 34.5% of the vote. The centre-right Spolu coalition of the outgoing prime minister, Petr Fiala, came second on 23.4%. Since the election, ANO has been in talks with the right-wing, Eurosceptic Motorists and the far-right, anti-EU and anti-Nato SPD parties, which together would hold a combined 108 out of the 200 seats in parliament’s lower house, Reuters reported. Related: Andrej Babiš to hold talks with other Czech parties on forming government 11.12am GMT Ukrainian man suspected of Nord Stream involvement will stay in Italy until Supreme Court hearing, lawyer says On the Ukrainian man suspected of involvement in the Nord Stream gas pipelines explosion, his lawyer Nicola Canestrini said in a statement that his client would appeal the decision by the court of appeals in Bologna. A different section of the same court had approved the extradition in September only for Italy’s top court to reject the decision over an issue with the arrest warrant issued by Germany, sending the case back for reexamination, AFP noted. In a statement, Canestrini said the proceedings against Kuznietsov were “tainted by serious procedural violations undermining both legality and the fundamental guarantees of due process.” Kuznietsov claims to have been a member of the Ukrainian armed forces and in Ukraine at the time of the incident, a claim his defence team has said would give him “functional immunity” under international law. “The Supreme Court hearing is expected to take place within about one month, and [the suspect] will remain in Italy until that decision is made,” lawyer Canestrini said. Updated at 11.30am GMT 10.34am GMT 'No hybrid attack will be tolerated,' Lithuanian PM says, with Belarus border closure We are also getting a bit more detail on the technical process of implementing Lithuania’s decision to close its border with Belarus (9:49). The border is currently closed on the basis of a temporary decision made by the country’s border force, and a further indefinite closure will be discussed and expected to be approved at the government meeting on Wednesday. The country’s prime minister Inga Ruginienė said at a press conference earlier today that the government has already drafted the order, which includes only very limited exceptions for Lithuanian and EU citizens as well as diplomatic mail to be still allowed through the border. “All other movement will be halted. This sends a clear signal to Belarus that no hybrid attack will be tolerated here, and we will take the strictest possible measures to stop such actions,” she said, as quoted by public broadcaster LRT. Updated at 10.41am GMT 10.17am GMT Italian court approves extradition of Nord Stream suspect to Germany - reports Meanwhile, we are getting a line from Italy that a court has approved the extradition of a Ukrainian suspect in the Nord Stream explosion case to Germany, according to German DPA news agency and Reuters. The suspect, identified previously only as Serhii K. under privacy laws, is expected to appeal against the decision to Italy’s highest court, his defence lawyer told Reuters. Related: Italian police arrest Ukrainian man over Nord Stream pipelines blast I will bring you more on this when we have it. Updated at 10.39am GMT 10.06am GMT French police arrest two men over €88m Louvre jewel heist in Paris Over in France, French police have arrested two suspects believed to have helped steal crown jewels worth an estimated €88m (£76m) from the Louvre museum in Paris, officials have said, a week after one of the country’s most spectacular heists in decades. The Paris public prosecutor confirmed media reports on Sunday that one man had been detained at about 10pm local time on Saturday at the capital’s Charles de Gaulle airport by officers from the armed robberies and serious burglaries squad. The prosecutor, Laure Beccuau, did not say how many arrests had been made nor whether any jewels had been recovered, but officials close to the investigation confirmed to French media that a second suspect had also been taken into custody in the Paris region. Beccuau said she regretted the premature revelation of the arrests in multiple media outlets, saying it “could only jeopardise the work of more than 100 investigators mobilised to recover the stolen jewels and apprehend all of the perpetrators.” Related: French police arrest two men over €88m Louvre jewel heist 9.43am GMT Poland detains two Ukrainians for allegedly spying for foreign intelligence Elsewhere, Poland has detained two Ukrainians accused of collecting details of soldiers and critical infrastructure for foreign intelligence as Warsaw cracks down on alleged espionage by Russia and Belarus, Reuters reported. The two Ukrainians were among eight people whose detention by Poland and Romania was announced last week, said special services minister Tomasz Siemoniak. “This is evidence that we are witnessing an intensification of sabotage activities and preparations for sabotage cases,” Siemoniak told Polish radio on Monday. Poland’s Internal Security Agency (ABW) said the two Ukrainian citizens, aged 32 and 34, were detained in the southern city of Katowice on 14 October. The ABW said in a statement that the suspects had allegedly collected information about members of the Polish Armed Forces and infrastructure related to efforts to support Ukraine. 9.03am GMT Lithuania not ruling out Nato Article 4 talks over balloons, Ruginienė says Lithuania’s Ruginienė also said that the country was not ruling out the possibility it could call for Nato’s Article 4 consultations, Reuters reported. The Article 4 – not to be mistaken with much more serious Article 5 provision – allows countries to call for Nato talks “whenever, in the opinion of any of them, the territorial integrity, political independence or security of any of the parties is threatened.” The procedure was only used nine times in Nato’s history, but fairly recently triggered by Poland and Estonia after two incidents of Russian airspace violations in September. 8.49am GMT Lithuania to close border with Belarus, shoot down balloons, prime minister says We are just getting first lines from the Lithuanian prime minister, Inga Ruginienė, following this morning’s security council meeting. The government will pursue a plan to close its border with Belarus “except for diplomats and EU citizens leaving Belarus,” she said, and pledged to shoot down any further balloons disrupting the Lithuanian airspace. “This is how we send a signal to Belarus and say that no hybrid attack will be tolerated here, we will take all the strictest measures to stop such attacks,” she said in comments reported by public broadcaster LRT. 8.36am GMT Almost 30,000 passengers hit by disruptions at Vilnius airport last week According to Lithuania’s public broadcaster LRT, the Vilnius Airport has reopened this morning with almost 50 flights affected by cancellations, diversions and delays, hitting thousands of passengers. In total, more than 170 flights were disrupted over the course of the week, complicating the journey of almost 30,000 passengers, the airport operator told LRT. It was explained that the decision to close the airspace as a precaution was deemed necessary as some of the balloons detected near the airport were believed to weigh up to 50-60 kg, and any impact with an incoming aircraft could have “dramatic” consequences. 8.28am GMT Morning opening: Lithuania to consider responding to balloons from Belarus closing its airspace Lithuania closed its Vilnius Airport for the fourth time in a week last night after several objects, believed to be helium balloons, entered its airspace. The balloons were primarily believed to be used by smugglers transporting contraband cigarettes from Belarus, but authorities blamed Russia and Belarus for putting more pressure on Vilnius and testing the country’s readiness. Vilmantas Vitkauskas, head of the National Crisis Management Center, told the country’s national broadcaster LRT that up to 66 objects were spotted on radars on Sunday night. Deividas Matulionis, a senior advisor to Lithaunia’s president Gitanas Nausėda, said it was part of a “hybrid psychological operation” seeking to disrupt everyday life of Lithuanians. “We very much hope that immediate action will be taken, but there should also be very strong diplomatic action and certain legal measures, which should be approved by the Seimas as soon as possible,” he told LRT. The country’s national security council will meet today to discuss next steps, including potential measures on extending the temporary closure of borders with Belarus or restricting transit through the Russian enclave of Kaliningrad. Elsewhere, I will be keeping an eye on: the German foreign minister Joseph Wadephul’s visit to Brussels where he is due to meet Nato’s Mark Rutte and senior EU representatives, Hungary’s Viktor Orbán’s trip to see Pope Leo at the Vatican and the Italian prime minister Giorgia Meloni in Rome, and the final days of the Dutch election campaign ahead of the polling day on Wednesday. Lots to cover today. I will bring you all the latest here. It’s Monday, 27 October 2025, it’s Jakub Krupa here, and this is Europe Live. Good morning.