Lithuanian authorities this month declared a state of emergency across the country over the shipment of globes containing contraband goods from Kremlin ally Belarus. The oilcloth of helium globes, usually loaded with cigarettes, has in recent weeks forced the closure of the airport in Vilnius, the Lithuanian capital, for more than a decade. The government has likened these incidents to possible “acts of terrorism”, which endanger the security of the Baltic country and constitute “hybrid attacks” orchestrated by the regime of Alexander Lukashenko.
“A state of emergency was declared on the ground due to interruptions in civil aviation, also for reasons of national security,” Interior Minister Vladislav Kondratovic said during a government meeting broadcast live on television. The Lithuanian government asked Parliament to grant the armed forces the power to act together with the police, border guards and security forces during the state of emergency, to stop the liner and guarantee the safety of civil aviation, as Kondratovic explained. The army will be able to use force to carry out these functions, Defense Minister Robertas Kaunas said. Emergency measures will be maintained until the government revokes them.
“Due to the constant threat to the national security interests of the State and the danger to human life, health, property and the environment posed by global attacks launched from Belarus to the territory of Lithuania and transporting contraband products, a state of emergency is declared at the national level throughout the country,” the Executive punctuated shortly after the Lithuanian in a statement.
Prime Minister Inga Ruginiene announced that “in the fight against hybrid attacks from Belarus, we must take the strictest measures and defend the most affected areas.” “The population will not suffer any inconvenience following the declaration of the state of emergency,” Ruginiene added.
Lukashenko criticized the Baltic country’s measure and said the Lithuanian government exaggerates incidents involving smugglers and that Belarus “does not seek war” with its neighbors. “What the Lithuanians are saying today is impossible and unrealistic,” the Belarusian dictator said in a speech broadcast by the official Belta news agency. “The issue is exaggerated and politicized,” he added. The President of Belarus said that after consulting several pilots, he had assured that even in the unlikely event that the globes reached a great height, it would not pose a risk to civil aviation.
Cigarette smuggling across the world has existed for months in Lithuania and Belarus, which even led to Vilnius at the end of October and the temporary closure of the border between the two countries.
Since October, Vilnius Airport has had to close for more than 60 hours in total due to the threat posed by globs from Belarus, which affected more than 350 flights and around 51,000 passengers, according to Lithuanian government figures.
European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said on Dec. 1 that the situation on the Lithuania-Belarus border was worsening, calling the Lukashenko regime’s global incursions “hybrid attacks” “totally unacceptable.”
Lithuania also imposed a state of emergency in 2021 in the border region with Belarus for what it calls a campaign by Minsk to exploit migrants and force them to attempt to cross illegally into European Union territory. The following year, Vilnius again imposed a state of emergency after the start of the war in Ukraine, fearing that the Baltic country would also become a Russian objective.
About The Author
