Nausėda: Some Russian attacks described as ‘hybrid’ are kinetic

Lithuanian President Gitanas Nausėda criticised the use of the term ‘hybrid threats’ at the opening of the Berlin Security Conference on 3 November 2026, LRT reported. He said some recent attacks were essentially kinetic. The conference is jointly organised by Germany and Lithuania. The account of his remarks comes from LRT; at the time of publication, Flank had found no independent confirmation of the specific attacks or their attribution to Russia.

‘Hybrid’ and ‘kinetic’ are not opposites

According to LRT, Nausėda calls ‘hybrid threats’ a ‘convenient euphemism’ and links sabotage and other operations to Russia. This is the Lithuanian president’s position, not independently established responsibility for specific attacks. It is unclear which incidents he describes as kinetic, what damage they caused and what evidence underpins their attribution to Moscow.

The two terms describe different things. ‘Hybrid’ refers to the combination of different instruments, while ‘kinetic’ refers to the physical impact of a specific action. An operation can have both characteristics.

In Flank’s assessment, Nausėda’s message is a call not to downplay actions with physical consequences by applying a blanket political label. Describing them more explicitly, however, does not in itself establish who carried them out or determine the Allied response. LRT does not report any new NATO decision or specific response measures.

Germany’s presence and defence projects in Lithuania

In the same address, Nausėda emphasises the strategic partnership with Germany and the importance of deploying Germany’s 45th Armoured Brigade to Lithuania.

LRT reports that a Rheinmetall artillery ammunition factory is already under construction in Lithuania and that a joint project with KNDS to assemble, maintain and repair Leopard tanks has begun. Flank has found no independent confirmation of the status of these projects; their timelines, capacity and contractual terms have not been specified.

The military presence, ammunition production and equipment repair perform different functions: providing forces, supplies and technical support. They can complement one another and strengthen defence resilience, but their actual impact depends on the readiness of the formations and the availability of operational production and repair facilities.