LITHUANIA DAILY NEWS BULLETIN
IN THIS ISSUE:
- Upcoming events in Lithuania for Thursday, August 24, 2023
- Two irregular migrants turned away on Lithuania's border with Belarus
- Lithuanian Seimas speaker to meet with NB8 counterparts in Stockholm
- Lithuania reports 72 new COVID-19 cases, no deaths
- Litvinism supporters may increase inter-ethnic tensions in Lithuania – SSD
- Lithuanian president vows ‘every support’ to Ukraine as it celebrates its Independence Day
- Lithuanian president: Prigozhin’s alleged death hardly changes anything
- Lithuanian president: Prigozhin’s alleged death hardly changes anything (expands)
- Lithuania sending EUR 41 mln military assistance package to Ukraine
- Upcoming events in Lithuania for Friday, August 25, 2023
Upcoming events in Lithuania for Thursday, August 24, 2023
VILNIUS, Aug 24, BNS – The following events are scheduled in Lithuania for Thursday, August 24, 2023:
PRESIDENT Gitanas Nauseda to continue his visit to Ukraine.
SPEAKER OF THE SEIMAS Viktorija Cmilyte-Nielsen to attend a ceremony to mark Ukraine’s Independence Day that will be hosted by the Riksdag of the Kingdom of Sweden at 1.30 p.m.; to take part in a meeting of speakers of Nordic-Baltic Eight (NB8) countries at the Riksdag at 2 p.m.
FOREIGN MINISTER Gabrielius Landsbergis to meet with Israeli Ambassador to Lithuania.
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Two irregular migrants turned away on Lithuania's border with Belarus
VILNIUS, Aug 24, BNS – Lithuanian border guards have in the past 24 hours turned away two migrants attempting to cross into the country from Belarus illegally, the State Border Guard Service (SBGS) said on Thursday morning.
Latvia reported 102 attempts at illegal border crossings on Wednesday, and another 60 irregular migrants were not allowed into Poland on Tuesday, according to the latest available information.
A total of 1,562 irregular migrants have been barred from entering Lithuania from Belarus at non-designated places so far this year. Over 11,200 irregular migrants were turned away in 2022.
Lithuanian border guards have prevented around 20,900 people from crossing in from Belarus since August 3, 2021, when they were given the right to turn away 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 in 2021. However, the vast majority of them fled Lithuania once they were allowed to move freely.
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Lithuanian Seimas speaker to meet with NB8 counterparts in Stockholm
VILNIUS, Aug 24, BNS – Speaker of the Lithuanian Seimas Viktorija Cmilyte-Nielsen is on Thursday going on a working visit to Stockholm where she will take part in a meeting of parliamentary speakers of the eight Nordic and Baltic countries (NB8).
The speakers of the parliaments of Denmark, Estonia, Iceland, Latvia, Lithuania, Norway, Finland and Sweden will focus on cooperation in responding to the regional security policy situation, the Lithuanian speaker's office said.
They will also discuss support for Ukraine.
"The visit will start on a symbolic day, Ukraine's Independence Day, so of course we will celebrate it. Together with the presidents of the Nordic and Baltic parliaments, Swedish politicians, journalists and the Baltic communities in Sweden, we will also participate in the reconstruction of the 'Monday Meetings'," Cmilyte-Nielsen said on the eve of the visit, referring to the rallies of the Swedes in support of independence of the Baltics that took place more than 30 years ago.
"In addition to the traditional meetings and other formats with colleagues, we are also planning activities with the Swedish Lithuanians," she added.
The Nordic-Baltic Eight (NB8) is an informal regional co-operation format between five Nordic and three Baltic states: Denmark, Estonia, Finland, Iceland, Latvia, Lithuania, Norway, and Sweden. The NB8 countries rotate each year to coordinate the NB8 activities. They organize and host meetings that take place during that year. Latvia coordinates NB8 cooperation this year.
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Lithuania reports 72 new COVID-19 cases, no deaths
VILNIUS, Aug 24, BNS – Lithuania has recorded 72 new coronavirus infections and no deaths from COVID-19 over the past 24 hours, official statistics showed on Thursday morning.
The number of COVID-19 patients in hospitals now stands at 26, including two ICU cases.
The 14-day primary infection rate has edged up to 20.5 cases per 100,000 people, with the seven-day percentage of positive tests at 18 percent.
The number of new coronavirus cases hit the peak in Lithuania in early February 2022 when more than 14,000 new infections were recorded daily.
Around 1.19 million people in Lithuania have tested positive for COVID-19 at least once.
Some 68.5 percent of people in the country have received at least one coronavirus vaccine jab so far, according to the statistics.
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Litvinism supporters may increase inter-ethnic tensions in Lithuania – SSD
VILNIUS, Aug 24, BNS – Litvinism supporters may increase inter-ethnic tensions in Lithuania, the State Security Department warned on Thursday, adding, however, that they do not pose a real threat to Lithuania's sovereignty and their activity has not intensified recently.
"The SSD maintains that the activities of supporters of the Litvinism ideology do not pose a real threat to the sovereignty, constitutional order and territorial integrity of the Republic of Lithuania at the moment, but the ideological attitudes disseminated by them may increase inter-ethnic tensions in the state and incite negative attitudes towards the part of the Belarusian community that is loyal to the State in Lithuania," the intelligence service told BNS on Thursday.
Litvinism is a radical branch of Belarusian nationalism, the SSD says, and one of its main ideological tenets is the denial of the Baltic origin of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania and the dynasties of the dukes who ruled it. Litvinism supporters also question the dependency of a large part of Lithuania's territory, including Vilnius. Litvinism supporters also make territorial claims against other states bordering Belarus.
Litvinists have negative attitudes towards the ruling regimes in Moscow and Minsk and strongly reject their official historical narrative that Russians and Belarusians are "one people", the SSD says.
This position has led to repressions by the Minsk regime and forced the most active supporters of this ideology to flee to European Union countries, including Lithuania, where they form part of the active opposition.
According to the SSD, the ideological confrontation between Lithuanians and Belarusians influenced by the ideology of Litvinism has been going on for more than two decades in niche online resources dedicated to history.
"There is no evidence of a significant increase in the dissemination of the Litvinist ideology on social media in recent months, but some incidents or statements by supporters of the ideology on social media have resonated in the Lithuanian information domain and prompted discussions about the risks associated with such activities," the intelligence institution said.
Some politicians and public figures in Lithuania have warned over the past several years about the threats posed by the ideology of Litvinism following an increase in the inflow of migrants from Belarus.
Belarusian opposition leader Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya said on Wednesday that the problem was artificially created to undermine relations between Belarusians and Lithuanians, adding that that "there are no such discussions in Belarus at all". She insisted that she herself would never question Lithuania's territorial integrity.
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Lithuanian president vows ‘every support’ to Ukraine as it celebrates its Independence Day
VILNIUS, Aug 24, BNS – Lithuanian President Gitanas Nauseda vowed to continue providing “every support” to Ukraine as he congratulated the Ukrainians on their Independence Day.
“Lithuania will continue to provide you with every support. Together, we will rebuild Ukraine and work towards making your country part of the Euro-Atlantic community,” the Lithuanian leader said on Thursday as he addressed those gathered in Sophia Square in Kyiv in the Ukrainian language.
“Our vision today is a strong Ukraine in a strong Europe! I believe that Ukraine will one day become a member of both the European Union and NATO. The aggressor will not determine Ukraine’s destiny!” he stressed.
According to Nauseda, “by trampling on the norms of the civilized world, Russia is trying to erase the Ukrainian identity. By killing innocent people, it seeks to destroy the future of Ukraine and Europe.”
“In the eyes of the whole world, you are setting an unparalleled example of courage and resolve… Today, I want to reaffirm that you are not alone. From the very first days of this war, Lithuania has been passionately supporting and firmly standing behind Ukraine,” he emphasized.
He added that Lithuania would never recognize the occupation and annexation of Crimea and other Ukrainian territories.
Ukraine declared its independence from the Soviet Union on August 24, 1991, after a failed putsch in Moscow.
However, Russia annexed the Crimean Peninsula from Ukraine in 2014 and launched a military invasion of its neighbor in late February 2022.
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Lithuanian president: Prigozhin’s alleged death hardly changes anything
VILNIUS, Aug 24, BNS – Alleged death of Yevgeny Prigozhin, the head of the Wagner mercenary group, hardly changes anything and does not improve the security situation, Lithuanian President Gitanas Nauseda has said.
“Prigozhin's death, if it is indeed confirmed, does not change much," the Lithuanian leader said in Kyiv on Thursday.
"It demonstrates that the [Russian] regime is entering another stage and that these people, whatever you may call them, are now killing each other already, but we should certainly not think that this death of Prigozhin makes us feel calmer or that it somehow improves the security situation," the president added.
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Lithuanian president: Prigozhin’s alleged death hardly changes anything (expands)
VILNIUS, Aug 24, BNS – Alleged death of Yevgeny Prigozhin, the head of the Wagner mercenary group, hardly changes anything and does not improve the security situation, Lithuanian President Gitanas Nauseda has said.
“Prigozhin's death, if it is indeed confirmed, does not change much," the Lithuanian leader said in Kyiv on Thursday, according to comments published by the communication group of the presidential office.
"It demonstrates that the [Russian] regime is entering another stage and that these people, whatever you may call them, are now killing each other already, but we should certainly not think that this death of Prigozhin makes us feel calmer or that it somehow improves the security situation," the president added.
According to Nauseda, one of the goals of Wagner's mercenaries is to destabilize the situation in the region and try to stage provocations.
"(...) our task, our sacred duty, is to protect the security of our borders, because today it is the most important thing, and to be ready, without any doubt, to defend our security together with our loyal partners," he stressed.
Russia's aviation agency, Rosaviatsia, said late on Wednesday that Prigozhin was on board of a private plane that crashed earlier that day while en route from Moscow to St. Petersburg.
Telegram channels linked to Wagner confirmed Prigozhin’s death but no official statement has been made yet.
Some experts urge caution and note that this information does not constitute confirmation of the death of Wagner's founder.
Meanwhile, France said on Thursday that there were "reasonable doubts" about the cause of the plane crash that presumably killed Prigozhin.
In late June, Wagner staged a short-lived rebellion in Russia, after which it was reported that Prigozhin and some of his fighters had moved to Belarus.
Minsk has claimed that Wagner members are training Belarusian soldiers.
Lithuanian and Polish leaders have said there are currently about 4,000 Wagner mercenaries in Belarus, with some of them stationed close to the two countries' borders.
Rustamas Liubajevas, the commander of the Lithuanian State Border Guard Service, has said, however, that there could be up to 4,500 of them.
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Lithuania sending EUR 41 mln military assistance package to Ukraine
VILNIUS, Aug 24, BNS – Lithuania is sending a new package of military assistance, worth 41 million euros, to Ukraine, the Defense Ministry reported on Thursday.
According to the ministry, the package includes Carl-Gustaf ammo, rifles, maritime surveillance radar kits, 5.56 mm cartridges, generators, anti-drones and other support.
NASAMS missile launchers will also be handed over to Ukraine.
"Lithuania's contribution to the fight for Ukraine's freedom has already amounted to millions of rounds of ammunition and thousands of weapons, and the return has been valuable lessons learnt and strengthened Lithuania's defense. Lithuania continues its unwavering support to Ukraine, which is celebrating its 32nd anniversary of independence today, and the total amount of its military assistance to Ukraine since the beginning of the war has already exceeded half a billion euros," the ministry’s press release quoted Defense Minister Arvydas Anusauskas as saying.
According to the ministry, Lithuania handed over Mi-8 helicopters, L-70 anti-aircraft guns with ammunition, M113 armored personnel carriers, millions of rounds of ammunition, and grenade launcher ammunition to Ukraine in the first seven months of this year.
“Lithuania also provides expert advice, contributes to international funds for assistance to Ukraine, contributes to the training of Ukrainian soldiers, conducts courses for them, and Lithuanian military instructors are also participating in Operation Interflex, during which they are training Ukrainian soldiers in the subtleties of combat together with other NATO allies," the ministry said.
It is also noted that the country's medical and rehabilitation facilities have received around 200 wounded Ukrainian soldiers.
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Upcoming events in Lithuania for Friday, August 25, 2023
VILNIUS, Aug 25, BNS – The following events are scheduled in Lithuania for Friday, August 25, 2023:
SPEAKER OF THE SEIMAS Viktorija Cmilyte-Nielsen to have breakfast with her Swedich counterpart Andreas Norlen in Sweden at 8 a.m.; to visit the Royal Palace at 10 a.m.; to take part in a simultaneous chess exhibition at the Lithuanian Embassy in Sweden at 4 p.m.
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