Lithuanian DHL plane crash could be sabotage, German foreign minister says
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Authorities must “seriously” consider whether a cargo plane crash in Lithuania was an act of “hybrid” warfare, Germany’s foreign minister said.
A DHL cargo plane flying from Leipzig, Germany, to Lithuania hit a building in Vilnius and exploded into a huge fireball early Monday morning, killing a crew member and injuring three others.
Russia has stepped up a hybrid warfare campaign since its full-scale invasion of Ukraine started in early 2022, targeting various EU countries with cyberattacks, sabotage and outright violence.
Lithuanian officials have said they are investigating the cause of the Vilnius crash but have so far not found any indication of sabotage.
“The fact that we, together with our Lithuanian and Spanish partners, must now seriously ask ourselves whether this was an accident or, after last week, another hybrid incident shows what volatile times we are currently living in, even in the center of Europe,” German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock said.
“The German authorities are working very closely with the Lithuanian authorities to get to the bottom of this,” she added.
Lithuanian Police Chief Arūnas Paulauskas said the crash was “most likely due to a technical fault or human error,” but added that terrorism “cannot be ruled out.”
“This is one of the versions of the crash that will be investigated and checked. There is a lot of work to be done,” Paulauskas said. “Gathering evidence may take all week, there will be no quick answers.”
Earlier this year, an incendiary device shipped from Lithuania via DHL caused a fire at a logistics centre in Leipzig. Western intelligence officials blamed Russia for that incident, according to reports, with British counter-terrorism officials also investigating whether the Kremlin was behind a parcel bomb at a DHL depot in Birmingham in July.
Black boxes found
The black boxes from the DHL cargo plane that crashed in Vilnius on Monday have been found, the Justice Ministry said on Tuesday.
They were found at around 11:30 and removed from the plane’s wreckage.
The inspection of the plane will be completed within three days and the aircraft will later be removed from the site, the authorities said earlier on Tuesday.
“We continue to plan our pre-trial investigation. I think the site inspection can be completed within the next two to three days,” Police Commissioner General Arūnas Paulauskas told a press conference in Vilnius on Tuesday.
“Then, a new stage will follow – the removal of the aircraft’s remains from the site. We are currently actively looking for a hangar where we can place these parts,” he added.
