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LITHUANIA DAILY NEWS BULLETIN, December 2, 2022

Dec 06 2022

 

LITHUANIA DAILY NEWS BULLETIN


IN THIS ISSUE:

  1. Only zero tolerance of Russian aggression can build trust in OSCE – Lithuanian formin 
  2. No migrants turned away on Lithuania-Belarus border for 2nd straight day
  3. Volunteers to share experiences at National Prayer Breakfast in Vilnius 
  4. Lithuania reports 415 new COVID-19 cases, one death
  5. Matijosaitis to run for 3rd term as Kaunas mayor 
  6. Lithuanian PM to visit US next week
  7. Lithuanian Customs nab shipment of counterfeit toys from China 
  8. Lithuania's Culture Ministry advises event organizers not to invite Russian artists
  9. Abukevicius leaves DefMin to work for Lithuanian Embassy in Tokyo
  10. Lithuanian PM to visit US next week (expands)
  11. NATO's multinational battle group in Lithuania completes live-fire exercise
  12. Drivers' strike may affect quarter of public transport in Vilnius – mayor
  13. Donor's liver, kidneys transplanted into patients in Kaunas 

Only zero tolerance of Russian aggression can build trust in OSCE – Lithuanian formin 

VILNIUS, Dec 02, BNS – Only zero tolerance of aggression and genocide by Russia will build trust in the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) and other international organizations, Lithuanian Foreign Minister Gabrielius Landsbergis said in Poland on Thursday.

"The OSCE was created to ensure security on the European continent. Unfortunately, Russia is still terrorizing not only Ukraine and its neighbors, but also the international organizations of which it is a member," Landsbergis said at the OSCE Ministerial Council meeting in Lodz.

"Only full intolerance of aggression, human rights violations and genocide being committed by Russia will strengthen confidence in the OSCE and will help use the tools available to the organization to stop Russia's barbaric actions on the battlefield and against the Ukrainian people," he said. 

The OSCE foreign ministers met in Lodz for the first time since Russia's aggression against Ukraine began.

"What is happening in Ukraine is not even a war, but outright terrorism. We must raise the issue of Russia's responsibility for this barbaric war in all international organizations," Landsbergis said in a discussion on how to end Russia's impunity.

"It is not only Ukraine that needs a special tribunal to investigate the crime of aggression. It is needed to reinforce faith in justice," he added.  

 

By Milena Andrukaitytė

This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it., +370 5 239 64 16, Vilnius newsroom


No migrants turned away on Lithuania-Belarus border for 2nd straight day

VILNIUS, Dec 02, BNS – Lithuanian border guards recorded no attempts to cross into the country from Belarus illegally for the second day in a row on Thursday, the State Border Guard Service (SBGS) said on Friday morning.

The last time the service registered no attempted illegal crossings for two successive days was on June 6 and 7 this year.

Latvia recorded 50 attempts to cross the border illegally on Thursday, and Polish border guards denied entry to 56 irregular migrants on Wednesday, according to the latest available information.

The daily number of migrants refused entry to Lithuania reached this year's high of 135 on September 20, nine fewer than the highest-ever number recorded on November 12, 2021.

A total of almost 10,800 irregular migrants have been stopped from entering Lithuania since January.

Lithuanian border guards have sent around 18,900 people back to Belarus since August 3, 2021, when they were given the right to deny entry to irregular migrants. The number includes repeated attempts by the same people to cross the border.

The SBGS says that illegal migration to Lithuania and the EU is being facilitated by Belarusian officials. 

Almost 4,200 irregular migrants crossed into Lithuania from Belarus illegally last year.

Lithuania calls the unprecedented influx of migrants from Belarus, which began more than a year ago, a "hybrid attack" by the Minsk regime.

 

This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it., Vilnius newsroom


Volunteers to share experiences at National Prayer Breakfast in Vilnius 

VILNIUS, Dec 02, BNS – Volunteers will share their experiences at the National Prayer Breakfast hosted by the Presidential Palace in Vilnius on Friday.  

The traditional event, whose theme this year is "Bring Strength and Hope", will be attended by President Gitanas Nauseda, his office has said.  

Svitlana Zaluzhna, head of the TULA project for Ukrainian and Lithuanian families and youth, Ajana Lolat, founder of the Mulan Foundation for Charity and Support, and Modestas Ekleris, volunteer of the Order of Malta's relief service, will share their personal testimonies.

Nauseda revived the tradition of the National Prayer Breakfast in Lithuania, started by Valdas Adamkus back in 2001, three years ago, according to the president's office. 

 

By Milena Andrukaitytė

This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it., +370 5 239 64 16, Vilnius newsroom


Lithuania reports 415 new COVID-19 cases, one death

VILNIUS, Dec 02, BNS – Lithuania has recorded 415 new coronavirus infections and one death from COVID-19 over the past 24 hours, official statistics showed on Friday morning.

Of the new cases, 294 were primary, 111 were secondary and ten were tertiary. 

The number of patients hospitalized with COVID-19 now stands at 127, including six ICU cases.

The 14-day primary infection rate has edged up to 151.64 cases per 100,000 people, with the seven-day percentage of positive tests unchanged at 19.8 percent.

The daily number of new coronavirus cases remains well below the peak of over 14,000 reached in early February.

More than 1.2 million people in Lithuania have tested positive with COVID-19 at least once.

Some 70 percent of the Lithuanian population have received at least one coronavirus vaccine jab so far.

 

This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it., +370 5 205 85 08, Vilnius newsroom


Matijosaitis to run for 3rd term as Kaunas mayor 

KAUNAS, Lithuania, Dec 02, BNS – Visvaldas Matijosaitis announced on Friday that he will run for a third term as mayor of Lithuania's second-biggest city of Kaunas. 

"I am a man of principle. I never take things lightly, and in this case I feel a great responsibility toward at least a third of a million people," Matijosaitis said in a comment to BNS.

"So I have decided to ask my employers, the people of Kaunas, one last time, can we go on? I am inviting everyone to express their will in the municipal elections on March 5," he said. 

The mayor said that "recent provocations by his opponents" aimed at him personally were among the factors that led to his decision to seek re-election.

"This is probably what makes me different from some political figures who would rather spend their time and energy on gossip and slander than on ideas, useful proposals and concrete work," he said. 

"Plenty of mud has been flung in my direction, especially now that the elections are just around the corner. But it is not for nothing that they call me a crab: I have a tough armor and I know how to stay away from cheap intrigues and concentrate on my work," he added. 

Matijosaitis has recently come under criticism for the protracted sale of his Viciunai Group business in Russia, and for an investigation into his family's possible non-transparent acquisition of land plots in Kaunas.

The mayor said the decision to run for re-election was "not quick and easy".

Matijosaitis has been serving as mayor since 2015. His public election committee, Vieningas Kaunas (United Kaunas), currently holds 32 out of 41 seats in the city's council.

The next municipal council and mayoral elections in Lithuania are scheduled for March 5. 

Others who have announced plans to run for Kaunas mayor include Gintautas Labanauskas of the Democratic Union "For Lithuania", Aurelijus Veryga of the Lithuanian Farmers and Greens Union, Vytautas Juozapaitis of the Homeland Union-Lithuanian Christian Democrats, Darius Razmislevicius of the Lithuanian Social Democratic Party, and Nijole Putriene of the Liberal Movement. The Freedom Party has named Mantas Bertulis, a TV producer, as its candidate. 

 

By Austėja Masiokaitė-Liubinienė

This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it., +370 645 093 86, Vilnius newsroom


Lithuanian PM to visit US next week

VILNIUS, Dec 02, BNS – Lithuanian Prime Minister Ingrida Simonyte will pay a visit to the United States next week. 

Simonyte is scheduled to visit Washington and Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, from Sunday to Thursday.

The prime minister's visit to the US was originally planned for June, but was cancelled after she tested positive for COVID-19.

 

This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it., +370 5 205 85 08, Vilnius newsroom


Lithuanian Customs nab shipment of counterfeit toys from China 

VILNIUS, Dec 02, BNS – Lithuanian customs officials have detained a shipment of counterfeit toys that arrived in a sea container from China.

The Klaipeda Territorial Customs said in a press release on Friday that they have detained boxes containing 72 pieces of money safe toys labelled "Avengers" and 288 units of board games labelled "Monopoly. " 

The cargo weighed 202 kilograms in total.

The transit declaration provided to the Customs said that the consignee of the goods was a company in Belarus' capital of Minsk. 

Klaipeda customs officials have launched an investigation into the shipment. 

The trademarks' representatives have confirmed that the toys were manufactured in violation of intellectual property rights and have to be confiscated and destroyed, according to the press release. 

 

This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it., +370 685 411 94, Vilnius newsroom


Lithuania's Culture Ministry advises event organizers not to invite Russian artists

VILNIUS, Dec 02, BNS - Lithuania's Culture Ministry advises event organizers not to invite Russian artists to Lithuania, except for those who condemn Vladimir Putin's regime.

"Cultural establishments, associations and event organizers are reminded of the recommendations of the Ministries of Culture and Foreign Affairs to temporarily restrict cooperation and not to invite Russian performers and cultural figures to Lithuania, except for those who have publicly condemned the Kremlin regime's military aggression against Ukraine and the democratic world," the ministry said in a statement on Friday.

EU member states were earlier asked to do so by Ukrainian Culture Minister Oleksandr Tkachenko during a meeting of EU culture ministers in Brussels earlier this week, the statement reads.

The Ukrainian minister also urged EU member states to refrain from implementing cultural projects involving Russia or funded by Russian companies.

The Ukrainian minister also called for greater support for Ukrainian culture representatives within the EU, and for Russian representatives to be restricted from international cultural events, unless they have publicly and explicitly condemned Russia's war in Ukraine.

The Lithuanian Ministry of Culture also reminds that cultural establishments, associations and event organizers are urged to strictly follow the recommendations, if persons have visited Crimea, other Russian-occupied territories of Ukraine, if they support the Russian war in Ukraine and the previous forms of aggression by Russia against other countries, i.e. if the artists have publicly supported the Kremlin's policy, taken part in related public campaigns and signed related public documents.

Lithuania restricts entry for Russian citizens under a joint agreement with the other Baltic states and Poland. Only Russian diplomats, dissidents, employees of transport companies, family members of EU citizens, and Russians with residence permits or long-stay national visas from Schengen countries can enter Lithuania. Visa applications from Russian nationals are also not accepted, except for cases of mediation by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it., +370 5 239 64 16, Vilnius newsroom


Abukevicius leaves DefMin to work for Lithuanian Embassy in Tokyo

VILNIUS, Dec 02, BNS - Margiris Abukevicius announced on Friday he had left his position as a vice minister of national defense and is going to work as a defense adviser at the Lithuanian Embassy in Japan.

"A couple of weeks ago, I said goodbye to my political team and went back to where I came from, the civil service", he posted on Facebook. – "Next stop is Japan. In January, I will take up the post of a defense adviser at the Lithuanian Embassy in Tokyo. I am leaving with an important mission to contribute to strengthening the defense element of the strategic partnership with Japan and to build defense ties with other like-minded countries in the Indo-Pacific."

The National Defense Minister had not informed the public about the vice minister's departure.

Abukevicius was appointed a vice minister of national defense in 2020 and was then said to be responsible for international cooperation and cyber security issues.

The Lithuanian national defense minister now has two vice ministers, Vilius Semeska and Zilvinas Tomkus.

This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it., +370 645 093 86, Vilnius newsroom


Lithuanian PM to visit US next week (expands)

VILNIUS, Dec 02, BNS – Lithuanian Prime Minister Ingrida Simonyte will pay a visit to the United States next week. 

Simonyte is scheduled to visit Washington and Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, from Sunday to Thursday.

The program of the visit includes meetings with US Vice President Kamala Harris, members of the Senate and the House of Representatives, Pennsylvania Governor Tom Wolf and Major General Mark J. Schindler, commander of the Pennsylvania National Guard, as well as members of the Lithuanian-American community in Washington, DC and representatives of Jewish organizations, the government's press office said on Friday. 

Simonyte and the US officials will discuss bilateral relations between Lithuania and the US, with a special focus on security and defense cooperation, it said.

"In Washington, DC, the prime minister will also discuss security issues in our region and in Europe, as well as the strengthening of the resilience of democracies to challenges posed by autocratic regimes, support for Ukraine and the tightening of sanctions against Russia and Belarus, NATO's long-term adaptation, and the upcoming NATO summit in Vilnius," it said. 

Simonyte will be presented with the Madeleine K. Albright Democracy Award during the National Democratic Institute's 2022 Democracy Gala event. 

She is also scheduled to attend the ASPEN Security Conference in Washington, DC, visit the museums for the victims of the Holocaust and communism, and give interviews to the US media.

The prime minister's visit to the US was originally planned for June, but was cancelled after she tested positive for COVID-19.

 

This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it., +370 645 093 86, Vilnius newsroom


NATO's multinational battle group in Lithuania completes live-fire exercise

VILNIUS, Dec 02, BNS – NATO's multinational enhanced Forward Presence Battalion Battle Group in Lithuania has completed the Rising Stallion top-level live-fire exercise, the Lithuanian Armed Forces said on Friday. 

The two-week exercise at the General Silvestras Zukauskas Training Area in Pabrade, close to Vilnius, included training with sound munitions and in simulators, and a lower-level live-fire practice, the military said in a press release. 

Realistic combat situations were created to give the opportunity to use the capabilities of Leopard 2 tanks, PzH2000 self-propelled howitzers, Boxer infantry fighting vehicles and troops. 

The training involved firing at stationary and moving targets in wooded and open terrain, according to the press release.

Troops from Germany, the Netherlands, the Czech Republic, Belgium, Norway and Luxembourg took part in the exercise.

The German-led battle group is stationed in Rukla, in central Lithuania, and is integrated into the Lithuanian Armed Forces' Iron Wolf Mechanized Infantry Brigade.

Allied troops participate in the military training program together with Lithuanian troops, according to the press release. 

 

This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it., Vilnius newsroom


Drivers' strike may affect quarter of public transport in Vilnius – mayor

VILNIUS, Dec 02, BNS – Drivers working for Vilniaus Viesasis Transportas (Vilnius Public transport, VVT) are set to go on strike on Monday, and the industrial action may affect a quarter of the public transport system in the Lithuanian capital, Mayor Remigijus Simasius says.

"In the worst-case scenario, about a quarter of public transport vehicles in the city will stop running," he told a press conference on Friday.

Darius Aleknavicius, director general at VVT, said that 35 percent of the company's drivers planned to go on strike, mostly those driving buses.

"About an hour ago, we received the trade union's lists of employees planning to take part in the strike, and the total number of employees on the list is 437, including 432 bus and trolleybus drivers," he said.

In his words, the majority of the drivers are bus drivers, so people using buses will be mostly affected on Monday, and trolleybus timetables are not expected to change significantly.

The VVT trade union demands the inclusion of the wage system into the updated collective agreement and also wants a 10 percent pay rise be enshrined in the agreement. But as the sides have so far failed to agreed on the details, the VVT administration unilaterally approved the new pay system.

VVT operates 76 out of 105 routes in Vilnius. Two other carriers, Transrevis and Kautra, also provide passenger services and they are expected to operate normally.

Passengers have been warned of possible disruptions and traffic jams on Monday and are urged to plan their journeys in advance and walk shorter distances.

By Milena Andrukaitytė, Paulius Perminas, Ignas Jačauskas

This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it., Vilnius newsroom


Donor's liver, kidneys transplanted into patients in Kaunas 

VILNIUS, Dec 02, BNS – A donor's liver and kidneys have been transplanted into recipients in in the Hospital of Lithuanian University of Health Sciences Kauno Klinikos, the National Transplant Bureau (NTB) said on Friday.

The donor's corneal and vascular tissue were also assessed as suitable for transplantation and sent to the Tissue Bank, it said in a press release.  

The NTB said it was the 45th effective organ donor this year.

Currently, 311 people are waiting for transplants in Lithuania: 64 for kidney transplants, 31 for heart transplants, nine for lung transplants, four for heart-lung complex transplants, 48 for liver transplants, and 155 for corneal transplants. Of these, four are children.

 

This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it., +370 5 205 85 08, Vilnius newsroom


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