LITHUANIA DAILY NEWS BULLETIN

IN THIS ISSUE:

1. Upcoming events in Lithuania for Monday, June 19, 2023
2. Two irregular migrants turned away on Lithuania's border with Belarus
3. Pernavas takes up office as Lithuania's anti-corruption chief
4. Vilnius-based, Belarusian-owned Advanced Optics Worldwide fails to exit Russia  (media)
5. Lithuania reports 3 new COVID-19 cases, no deaths
6. Democrats "For Lithuania" want to join European Green Party
7. Bruzga appointed Lithuania's ambassador to Israel
8. Lithuanian architects pool European counterparts to preserve cultural heritage in Ukraine
9. NATO jets in Baltics scrambled four times over Russian aircraft last week
10. Lithuania expects to set up 100 km of patrol trail along Belarus border this year
11. Lithuania's Customs intercepts more than EUR 27,000 smuggled from Belarus
12. Repair workshop for Vilkas IFVs completed in Lithuania's Rukla
13. Lithuania expects to set up 100 km of patrol trail along Belarus border this year (expands)
14. Military mobility use adds importance to Via Baltica – Lithuanian PM  
15. CNSD chair suggest makings resistance course mandatory for civil servants in Lithuania
16. Vilnius-based Yukon Advanced Optics Worldwide says it's ceasing operations in Russia
17. Upcoming events in Lithuania for Tuesday, June 20, 2023

Upcoming events in Lithuania for Monday, June 19, 2023

VILNIUS, Jun 19, BNS – The following events are scheduled in Lithuania for Monday, June 19, 2023:

PRESIDENT Gitanas Nauseda to swear in Linas Pernavas, the new director of the Special Investigation Service, and his deputies at 11 a.m.  

PRIME MINISTER Ingrida Simonyte and TRANSPORT MINISTER Marius Skuodis to attend at 10 a.m. a ceremony launching the upgrading of the longest Via Baltica section between Marijampole and the border with Poland. 

FOREIGN MINISTER Gabrielius Landsbergis to meet with Sweden's ambassador to Lithuania. 

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Two irregular migrants turned away on Lithuania's border with Belarus

VILNIUS, Jun 19, 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 Monday morning.

Latvia reported 30 attempts at illegal border crossings on Sunday, and 142 irregular migrants were not allowed into Poland on Saturday, according to the latest available information.

A total of 1,225 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 about 20,500 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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Pernavas takes up office as Lithuania's anti-corruption chief

VILNIUS, Jun 19, BNS – Linas Pernavas, a former police commissioner general, is on Monday taking office as director of Lithuania's Special Investigation Service (SIS).

Until his new appointment, Pernavas served as Lithuania's police attaché to the United Kingdom 

The parliament gave the green light for Pernavas' appointment in May even though the parliamentary Committee on National Security and Defense – the lead committee on the matter – had voted against his nomination.

Pernavas graduated from the then Lithuanian University of Law in 1999 and received a Master's degree in Law from Vilnius University in 2005. 

He joined the interior affairs system in 1995 and climbed the career ladder to serve as Lithuania's police commissioner general from 2014 to 2019.

The Federation of Lithuanian Law Enforcement Officers has criticized Pernavas' nomination, saying that a police reform initiated by the then commissioner general was detrimental to the system and that his appointment as director of the SIS will weaken the anti-corruption agency as well.

The position of the anti-corruption body's director has been vacant since March when the term of office of Zydrunas Bartkus expired. 

The agency's main functions are the investigation of corruption cases, corruption prevention, analytical anti-corruption intelligence.

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Vilnius-based, Belarusian-owned Advanced Optics Worldwide fails to exit Russia  (media)

VILNIUS, Jun 19, BNS – Yukon Advanced Optics Worldwide, a Vilnius-based manufacturer of optical instruments, has not yet exited Russia, the LRT online news site reported on Monday. 

Established by Belarusians, Yukon Advanced Optics Worldwide has been operating in Lithuania for almost two decades.

The group denounced Russia's aggression against Ukraine immediately after Moscow launched the full-scale invasion of its neighbor.

Although the company announced last year that it was suspending production at its facility in Smolensk, Russia, due to the war, operations are still ongoing, according to LRT.  

Information collected by the Lithuanian public broadcaster and international partners from Scanner Project show that Mezon-A, which is part of the Yukon Group, has received at least 2.3 million euros in sales revenue from Russian customers since the start of the war. Data from Russian registers indicate that the revenue might exceed 3 million euros. 

Mezon-A's main customers included the CEK group of companies, which sells optical instruments and carries out the Russian state's defense orders.

According to LRT, Yukon Advanced Optics Worldwide's Pulsar-branded night sights were handed over to the Russian forces fighting in Ukraine in early February this year.

The journalistic investigation has revealed that the model handed over to the Russians in February was manufactured by the Yukon Group's Beltex Optic company in Belarus. This company was the main supplier to the Russian market. Since the start of the war, Mezon-A has paid 1 million euros to Beltex Optic for the equipment and work. The Belarusian company's revenue came in 34 million euros last year.

LRT and its partners say they have identified dozens of other cases where Pulsar-branded equipment was sent to the front.

Vilnius-based Yukon Advanced Optics Worldwide says that the devices could have been sold before the war, adding that it cannot control individual cases of its equipment ending up at the front, according to the website. 

The Russian company provided loans totaling 3.4 million euros to Belarus' Beltex Optic last year and this year.

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Lithuania reports 3 new COVID-19 cases, no deaths

VILNIUS, Jun 19, BNS – Lithuania has recorded three new coronavirus infections and no deaths from COVID-19 over the past 24 hours, official statistics showed on Monday morning.

The 14-day primary infection rate has edged down to 17 cases per 100,000 people, with the seven-day percentage of positive tests at 6.7 percent.

The number of COVID-19 patients in hospitals now stands at 53, including three ICU cases.

The daily number of new coronavirus cases remains well below the peak of over 14,000 reached in early February 2022.

Around 1.19 million people in Lithuania have tested positive for COVID-19 at least once.

Some 69.8 percent of people in the country have received at least one coronavirus vaccine jab so far.

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Democrats "For Lithuania" want to join European Green Party

VILNIUS, Jun 19, BNS – The opposition Democrats "For Lithuania" decided at its party's convention on Saturday to seek membership of the European Green Party.

"This party has 72 members in the European Parliament and is the fourth largest group. So far, no Lithuanian party belongs to the EGP, so our union's decision is a new step. EGP brings together national parties that are guided by green values and are active not only in Europe," MP Lukas Savickas said in a statement. "It also talks about stopping climate change, creating new jobs, strengthening human rights, empowering young people."

The convention also amended the party's statutes, empowering the party's community to set up an analytical center, the Institute of Democracy.

Established in January 2022, the Democrats "For Lithuania" is a center-left political force that has 16 members in the Lithuanian Seimas and is led by ex-Lithuanian Prime Minister Saulius Skvernelis.

The party has not taken part in the EP election yet as its political group in the Seimas was established after the majority of its members left the Lithuanian Farmers and Greens Union group.

By Augustas Stankevičius

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Bruzga appointed Lithuania's ambassador to Israel

VILNIUS, Jun 19, BNS – President Gitanas Nauseda has appointed Audrius Bruzga as Lithuania's ambassador to Israel.  

Bruzga, currently director of the Foreign Ministry's Directorate for Global Affairs, is expected to take up his new duties on September 1, replacing Lina Antanaviciene, the outgoing ambassador.

The diplomat has in the past represented Lithuania in Finland, the US and Turkey. He served as foreign policy adviser to Prime Minister Algirdas Butkevicius in 2013 to 2015. 

Nauseda has recalled Gintautas Vasiulis, Lithuania's ambassador to Kazakhstan, as of August 16, and Jurate Raguckiene, the ambassador to Croatia, and Giedrius Cekuolis, the ambassador to Sweden, as of August 31 due to the expiry of their terms.

In Lithuania, ambassadors are appointed and dismissed by the president on the government's proposal and with the approval of the parliamentary Committee on Foreign Affairs.

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Lithuanian architects pool European counterparts to preserve cultural heritage in Ukraine

VILNIUS, Jun 19, BNS - Lithuanian architects are bringing together European and Ukrainian counterparts to preserve cultural heritage in Ukraine.

During the three-year cultural project, European and Ukrainian architects will work on the preservation and restoration of Ukraine's cultural heritage through research, workshops, public discussions, events, refresher courses and architectural studies.

Dubbed "U-RE-HERIT. Architects for Ukraine's Heritage: Recovering Memory and Identity", the project will be funded by the EU's Creative Europe program and the Lithuanian Council for Culture.

"As the Russia-caused war in Ukraine continues, the world and Ukraine are also preparing intensively for the country's reconstruction. The cultural sector is one of the areas in need of attention and funding, and cultural heritage is one of the most important resources for sustainable cultural, social, environmental and economic recovery," the Lithuanian Union of Architects says.

The project consortium consists of 12 architectural organizations from Europe and Ukraine, including those from Sweden, Austria, Denmark, Romania, Italy, Estonia and Germany.

One million euros has been allocated for this project under the Creative Europe program.

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NATO jets in Baltics scrambled four times over Russian aircraft last week

VILNIUS, Jun 19, BNS – NATO's fighter jets policing Baltic airspace were last week scrambled four times to intercept Russian aircraft flying in international airspace over the Baltic Sea in violation of flight rules, the Lithuanian Defense Ministry said on Monday.

On June 13, NATO jets took off twice to identify and escort a Russian AN-30 reconnaissance plane, a TU-134UBL passenger plane, an IL-20 attack plane, an IL-78 refueling plane and an AN-72 transporter.

On June 14, NATO fighter jets were scrambled to identify and escort two Russian SU-27 fighter jets, and an IL-20.

On June 18, an IL-76 was identified and escorted.

The majority of the Russian aircraft had no pre-filed flight plans, were flying with their onboard transponders off but maintained radio communication with the regional traffic control center.

The NATO Baltic air policing mission is carried out from air bases in Lithuania and Estonia.

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Lithuania expects to set up 100 km of patrol trail along Belarus border this year

SALCININKAI DISTRICT, Lithuania, Jun 19, BNS – Lithuanian Interior Minister Agne Bilotaite expects just over 100 kilometers of patrol trail along the border with Belarus to be set up by the end of this year.

"The first stage has started and 10 million euros have been earmarked for it," she told reporters on Monday. "We expect to complete these works by the end of this year." 

The second phase, worth 40 million euros, will involve installing another 250 kilometers, according to the minister. 

"We will do our best to maximize that infrastructure," she said.

The patrol trail will be up to 3.5 meters wide and will be accessible by foot, off-road vehicle, quad bike and other special equipment.

The patrol trail is already in place in some places, but it has to be upgraded, according to Bilotaite.

The installation of the border patrol trail is an ongoing project to beef up the protection of the EU's external borders. The project costs an estimated 10 million euros, with 75 percent of the funding coming from the EU and the remaining 25 percent from the national budget. 

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Lithuania's Customs intercepts more than EUR 27,000 smuggled from Belarus

VILNIUS, Jun 19, BNS – Customs officers at Lithuania's Raigardas road post have busted Belarusian citizens as they attempted to smuggle over 27,000 euros into the country, the Customs service's Kaunas territorial office said on Monday. 

The Belarusian citizens entered Lithuania from Belarus via the Raigardas road checkpoint in an Opel car and attempted to smuggle the money – more than 27,000 euros and 1,145 US dollars – without declaring it and hiding it from customs officers.

The smuggled money was seized and a pre-trial investigation was opened.

The Lithuanian Customs reminds that people are required to declare cash amounts exceeding 10,000 euros or an equivalent amount in another currency when crossing the EU's external borders.

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Repair workshop for Vilkas IFVs completed in Lithuania's Rukla

VILNIUS, Jun 19, BNS – A repair workshop, the bigger of the two, for the Vilkas (Wolf) infantry fighting vehicles and other military transport equipment has been completed in Lithuania's Rukla, the country's Defense Ministry said on Monday.

"We pay great attention to the development of infrastructure for the maintenance and storage of newly acquired weapons and military equipment, and we are very pleased that the construction of the workshop for the Vilkas IFVs has been completed on time and we can ensure the quality operation of this advanced equipment," Defense Minister Arvydas Anusauskas was quoted as saying in the statement.

Signed last spring, the design and construction contract for the workshop, worth around 12 million euros, was implemented by Jungtiniai Projektai.

The workshop is designed to accommodate nearly 100 specialists, and both military and civilian maintenance and repair specialists will be able to work here. 

Other important military infrastructure projects have been completed or being implemented in Rukla. The smaller IFV repair workshop was built last year, and there are plans this year to build a car wash and a simulation system building.

Lithuania is investing around 10 percent of its total defense budget into the development of infrastructure for the army.

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Lithuania expects to set up 100 km of patrol trail along Belarus border this year (expands)

SALCININKAI DISTRICT, Lithuania, Jun 19, BNS – Lithuanian Interior Minister Agne Bilotaite expects just over 100 kilometers of patrol trail along the border with Belarus to be set up by the end of this year.

"The first stage has started and 10 million euros have been earmarked for it," she told reporters on Monday. "We expect to complete these works by the end of this year." 

The second phase, worth 40 million euros, will involve installing another 250 kilometers, and the third phase, the most difficult one, will be carried out in the marshy areas of the border, according to the minister. 

"We will do our best to maximize that infrastructure," she said.

Rustamas Liubajevas, commander of the Lithuanian State Border Guard Service (SBGS), told reporters after his visit to Kurmelionys, a village in the district of Salcininkai, that the first phase of the project focuses on places which are badly in need of repair.

The patrol trail will be up to 3.5 meters wide and will be accessible by foot, off-road vehicle, quad bike and other special equipment.

The path is already in place in some places, but it has to be upgraded, according to Bilotaite.

"The patrol trail was installed back in 2002-2003, (...) but the infrastructure has since worn out, and (...) the path was damaged during the installation of the physical barrier and the surveillance systems," said Liubajevas.

The border guard chief said that around eight kilometers of patrol trail are currently in place. 

"The work is being done in difficult conditions. The border runs through (...) districts that are very far away from the main infrastructure elements, and the contractors' work is being hampered by the landscape, water, forests, marshy places and the geographical location," he said. 

According to Liubajevas, the authorities have signed contracts with four contractors.

The installation of the border patrol trail is an ongoing project to beef up the protection of the EU's external borders. The project costs an estimated 10 million euros, with 75 percent of the funding coming from the EU and the remaining 25 percent from the national budget. 

Asked if such preventive measures will help cut down on smuggling and irregular migration, the SBGS commander said that provocations are still possible and that smugglers are changing their tactics. 

"With the physical barrier and the surveillance systems in place, smugglers' tactics have changed somewhat: more and more contraband is being transported by drones," he said. "So we can say that the volume of smuggling is decreasing, but the number of cases is increasing."

When it comes to irregular migration, the situation remains tense, but more favorable than in neighboring countries, Liubajevas said, adding that the authorities prepare for possible provocations during NATO's summit in Vilnius in mid-July.

"We see the involvement of Belarusian border guards, so we prepare for possible provocations during the NATO summit," he said. "It possible that Alexander Lukashenko's regime may use it to destabilize the situation in our country."

Tightened controls will be in place at the border during the event in the Lithuanian capital, according to Liubajevas.  

Lithuanian border guards have prevented about 20,500 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.

Some 530 kilometers of fencing and 360 kilometers of concertina barrier have been installed on Lithuania's border with Belarus over the past year. Also, the entire border is covered by surveillance systems.

Lithuania and Belarus share a border of 679 kilometers, including more than 100 kilometers along rivers and lakes.

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Military mobility use adds importance to Via Baltica – Lithuanian PM  

VILNIUS, Jun 19, BNS – Via Baltica is very important because it will be used not only for civilian purposes but also for military mobility, Prime Minister Ingrida Simonyte said on Monday as Lithuania starts upgrading one of the international motorway's longest stretches between the southern town of Marijampole and the border with Poland.  

The motorway "would be a transport artery and a gateway for those coming to Lithuania and, what is extremely important, it would be a part of the military mobility infrastructure", Simonyte said at a ceremony marking the launch of the upgrading project. 

"This road will have to meet the requirements of military mobility as well," she said. 

Asked why the construction of the motorway in Lithuania is slower than in Poland, the prime minister said this is due to the lengthy process of taking land for public use and to the country having other priorities. 

"It could have been done earlier, but it is always a question of priorities," Simonyte said.

"A significant amount of extra money was earmarked for roads in 2020, during the COVID-19 (pandemic). The prices were lower back then (...), but the land procedures had not been completed, and there is a lot of these, because you have to buy private land before starting design work." 

Transport Minister Marius Skuodis said that 30 kilometers of Via Baltica between Marijampole and Poland are expected to be completed by the end of 2024, leaving another 12 kilometers to be built near the border. 

"The contractors plan to finish this 16-kilometer section, probably the most difficult one, by the end of summer next year," he said at Monday's event. 

"In other words, we will have all 30 kilometers of the motorway by the end of next year, and we will still have 12 kilometers to go right up to the Polish border," he said. "I do hope that we will be able to start that work by the end of this year." 

Marius Svaikauskas, director general of the Lithuanian Road Administration, says that preparatory work on the last section of Via Baltica – from the northern town of Panevezys to the border with Latvia, is also underway.

"We are already preparing for the upgrading of the next section of Via Baltica, from Panevezys to the Latvian border: pre-project solutions are being finalized and territorial planning procedures are planned to begin," he was quoted as saying in the Transport Ministry's press release. 

The entire 40-kilometer road between Marijampole and the Polish border will become a four-lane motorway in 2025, the ministry said, noting that this marks the largest road infrastructure construction project in Lithuania since independence.

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CNSD chair suggest makings resistance course mandatory for civil servants in Lithuania

VILNIUS, Jun 19, BNS - Laurynas Kasciunas, chair of the Lithuanian parliamentary Committee on National Security and Defense, has proposed making a course on civil resistance mandatory for all civil servants.

Kasciunas has registered an amendment to the Law on the Civil Service, and it would oblige civil servants who have not undergone training on mobilization and civil resistance in times of mobilization and war to do so within one year of joining the civil service.

"Given the current geopolitical and security situation in the region, all civil servants must acquire knowledge of mobilization, host nation support and civil resistance. Each of them must know how to behave in times of mobilization and war," Kasciunas told BNS.

Under his proposal, the changes would come into force as of January 1.

The Defense Ministry has been has been organizing training on mobilization readiness, host country support and civil resistance since 2006 but such training is mandatory only for persons included into the reserve of civilian mobilization personnel.

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Vilnius-based Yukon Advanced Optics Worldwide says it's ceasing operations in Russia

VILNIUS, Jun 19, BNS - Yukon Advanced Optics Worldwide, a Vilnius-based Belarusian-owned optical equipment manufacturer, said on Monday it’s in the process of winding up its operations in Russia and it is no longer producing or selling its products in Russia and Belarus.

The company's statement followed the Lithuanian public broadcaster LRT's report earlier in the day that Yukon has so far not withdrawn from Russia.

"Mezon-A (the group's company in Russia - BNS) booked new transactions with Russian customers for 165,000 euros since the beginning of the war in 2022, and there were no sales at all in 2023," the company said in its statement.

The company has no production staff and has only 9 administrative staff, it said, adding that they are necessary to ensure its liquidation process. 

According to the LRT, Yukon Advanced Optics Worldwide announced last year it was suspending operations at its facility in Smolensk, Russia, due to the war. However, operations there are still ongoing. Data collected by the LRT and its international partners from Scanner Project Mezon-A has received at least 2.3 million euros in product sales from its Russian customers since the start of the war, and its main customers included the CEK group, an optics group that sells optical devices and receives orders from Russia's defense sector.

Belarusian-made Yukon Advanced Optics Worldwide-branded Pulsar night sights were handed over to Russian forces fighting in Ukraine in February, and dozens of cases of Pulsar equipment being sent to the front have also been identified by journalists, the LRT says.

For its part, Yukon says all of these devices entered Russian hands through illegal channels despite the company's ban.

"The company told the LRT that "the spotted device was manufactured in the Republic of Belarus before 2020, before the reduction of the factory's production volumes (...). Therefore, we do not rule that it was purchased on the secondary market", the company said in its statement.

According to the LRT, Yukon Advanced Optics Worldwide representatives say devices sold earlier, not in 2022, might have ended up on the front-line, adding that the company cannot control individual cases of equipment ending up on the front-line.

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Upcoming events in Lithuania for Tuesday, June 20, 2023

VILNIUS, Jun 20, BNS – The following events are scheduled in Lithuania for Monday, June 19, 2023:

PRESIDENT Gitanas Nauseda to deliver is State of the Nation Address at 10 a.m.

CULTURE MINISTER Simonas Kairys to meet with Japanese Ambassador Ozaki Tetsu at 2 p.m.

THE ARMY

Portugal's new Chief of Defense General Jose Nunes da Fonseca to pay an official visit to Lithuania.

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LITHUANIA DAILY NEWS BULLETIN

IN THIS ISSUE:

1. NATO defmins agree on rotational air defense model – Lithuania's Anusauskas
2. Upcoming events in Lithuania for Friday, June 16, 2023
3. Lithuania records one attempt by irregular migrants to enter from Belarus
4. Lithuanian defmin to discuss regional plans, Baltic air defense with NATO counterparts
5. France vows to step up accelerate delivery of Caesar howitzers to Lithuania
6. Lithuanian parlt fall session to start with govt no confidence vote – Karbauskis
7. Lithuanian army records 95 defense disinformation cases in May
8. Lithuanian president to deliver State of Nation Address next week
9. Lithuania allocates EUR 10 mln to EIB Ukraine reconstruction fund
10. No extreme situation over drought for whole of Lithuania yet
11. Lithuanian center sees no need for nationwide extreme situation over drought for now  (further expands)
12. Lithuania's army chief off to Germany to discuss assigned brigade's exercise plans
13. Lithuanian organizers put European Figure Skating Championships budget at EUR 1.5 mln
14. We’ll propose ban on some dual-use goods passing through Lithuania – minister
15. Rotational air defense best for efficient use of NATO resources – Lithuanian president
16. Upcoming events in Lithuania for Monday, June 19, 2023

NATO defmins agree on rotational air defense model – Lithuania's Anusauskas

VILNIUS, Jun 16, BNS - NATO defense ministers agreed on a rotational air defense model in Brussels on Friday, Lithuania's Defense Ministry said.

"We have agreed with NATO defense ministers on a rotational air defense model. The model sets out the principles for countries to be able to allocate ground-based air defense and aviation capabilities, starting from NATO's eastern flank. This will ensure a faster transition to air defense and improve the readiness and interoperability of air forces," Anusauskas said.

Lithuania has prepared and will ensure favorable conditions for the implementation of the rotational air defense model, including infrastructure, host nation support and personnel, the Lithuanian minister was quoted as saying in the ministry's statement.

"In cooperation with Latvia and Estonia, we have established large interconnected airspaces in the region and they can be activated within a few hours for training or other purposes," Anusauskas said.

NATO defense ministers also agreed on an increased allied cyber defense commitment. A new mechanism for virtual assistance to allies facing cyber-attacks was also approved.

The Brussels meeting also discussed a new plan to increase the production and stockpiling of ammunition and weapons, to be adopted at the forthcoming NATO summit in Vilnius.

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Upcoming events in Lithuania for Friday, June 16, 2023

VILNIUS, Jun 16, BNS – The following events are scheduled in Lithuania for Friday, June 16, 2023

SPEAKER OF THE SEIMAS Viktorija Cmilyte-Nielsen to attend the Leadership Conference EBIT in Vilnius at 10 a.m.

DEFENSE MINISTER Arvydas Anusauskas to attend a meeting of NATO defense ministers in Brussels.

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Lithuania records one attempt by irregular migrants to enter from Belarus

VILNIUS, Jun 16, BNS – Lithuanian border guards have in the past 24 hours recorded one attempt by irregular migrants to cross into the country from Belarus, the State Border Guard Service (SBGS) said on Friday morning.

Latvia reported 34 attempts at illegal border crossings on Thursday, and 80 irregular migrants were not allowed into Poland on Wednesday, according to the latest available information.

A total of 1,204 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 about 20,500 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 defmin to discuss regional plans, Baltic air defense with NATO counterparts

VILNIUS, Jun 16, BNS – Lithuanian Defense Minister Arvydas Anusauskas will discuss regional defense plans and Baltic air defense with NATO defense ministers in Brussels on Friday.

"We will discuss the regional plans, and I am sure we will have already approved them at the Vilnius summit," the minister told BNS, also voicing his expectation that allies will agree on rotational air defense in the Baltic states.

Lithuania and other Baltic countries have been pushing for some time for NATO to beef up air defense capabilities in the region. This would allow replacing NATO's almost 20-year old air policing mission with an air defense mission.

The matter has become more widely discussed since Russia's invasion of Ukraine.

However, given the shortage of such weapons, the proposal is to deploy the air defense capabilities on a rotational basis, meaning that a different Western partner could send military equipment to a different Baltic country on a rotational basis.

NATO's new regional defense plans were also drawn up some time ago in response to the war in Ukraine. They cover the Baltic states and Poland and essentially provide for defense from the earliest days of a potential conflict.

This reflects a change in NATO's posture as, in the past, the Alliance assumed that in the event of a military conflict, the Baltic countries would have to withstand an attack on their own until allies came to the rescue.

NATO defense ministers are meeting in Brussels in preparation for the NATO summit in Vilnius in July.

By Augustas Stankevičius

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France vows to step up accelerate delivery of Caesar howitzers to Lithuania

VILNIUS, Jun 16, BNS - France has promised to accelerate the delivery of the next generation of Caesar Mark II self-propelled wheeled howitzers to Lithuania, Lithuania's Defense Ministry says.

The howitzer matter was on Thursday discussed in Brussels by Lithuanian and French Defense Minister Arvydas Anusauskas and Sebastien Lecorne.

"By acquiring French Caesar howitzers, we are significantly strengthening our army's capabilities, which is particularly important now that we have made the decision to develop a national division," Anusauskas was quoted as saying the ministry's statement.

Lithuania joined the Caesar Mark II development program under a bilateral agreement in late 2022 and will add 18 self-propelled 155 mm wheeled howitzers to its defense capabilities.

The howitzers are scheduled to be delivered to the Lithuanian army by 2027.

The Defense Ministry plans to spend around 110-150 million euros on the entire Caesar Mark II artillery systems development and acquisition project. These funds will be used both for the development and acquisition of the systems and for their introduction within the army. 

The Caesar artillery system is currently in use or is to be acquired by several other NATO allies, including Belgium, the Czech Republic, Denmark and France.

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Lithuanian parlt fall session to start with govt no confidence vote – Karbauskis

VILNIUS, Jun 16, BNS – The Lithuanian parliament's fall session will begin with a vote of no confidence in the government, Ramunas Karbauskis, leader of the opposition Lithuanian Farmers and greens Union, says.

He admits, however, there will be a lack of votes to sack the government.

"Interpellations for a few ministers make no sense, so we need to try to do it for the whole government. (...) Of course, the session will start with that, but when I am asked whether we can do things to make the government change, to make the government go, no, it's impossible as we need votes from the ruling majority," Karbauskis told the Ziniu Radijas news radio on Friday.

Karbauskis reminded that his party a motion of no confidence in the government in the middle of May but it failed to receive backing from other opposition representatives. Now, in his words, the Democrats "For Lithuania" are also talking about this procedure. 

According to the Law on the Government, at least one-fifth of the Seimas (29 members) may submit an interpellation for the prime minister or a minister during a Seimas session, and also submit as well as a draft resolution of no-confidence in the government.

If the Seimas decides it is not satisfied with the prime minister and ministers' answers, a secret ballot would be held and, if more than 71 MPs vote in favor during a vote of no-confidence, the government would have to go.

The vote of no confidence in the government is being prepared after a failed attempts to call a snap Seimas election.

By Jurgita Andriejauskaitė

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Lithuanian army records 95 defense disinformation cases in May

VILNIUS, Jun 16, BNS – Lithuanian army analysts recorded 95 unique cases of disinformation regarding defense issues in the hostile information space in Lithuania, according to a report released on Friday.

The three main topics that dominated in May were the war in Ukraine, Lithuania's NATO membership and NATO-Russian- relations.

According to the army, the major disinformation flow focused on the war in Ukraine, and support for Ukraine by Western countries, including Lithuania, was described as warmongering. The popularity of the "Russian-NATO war" narrative remained unchanged as the Alliance was accused of direct involvement in the war in Ukraine.

As usual, hostile channels used news about the international Exercise Iron Wolf 2023 conducted by the Lithuanian army and spread disinformation about military threats to Kaliningrad and Belarus, allegedly arising from the exercise, and Poland and Lithuania were also accused of developing secret plans to engage in the war in Ukraine.

"In the run-up to the NATO summit, Kremlin-controlled sources spread disinformation about the Alliance's defense plans, describing as offensive rather than defensive," the report said.

At the same time, NATO itself was accused of getting ready for an open conflict with Russia and of having prepared a special plan for this purpose, which will allegedly be approved in Vilnius.

Army analysts say hostile countries were spreading disinformation to persuade their internal audiences to support the Kremlin's policies, both in the context of the war in Ukraine and in the context of relations with NATO.

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Lithuanian president to deliver State of Nation Address next week

VILNIUS, Jun 16, BNS – Lithuanian President Gitanas Nauseda will deliver his 4th State of the Nation Address on Tuesday.

Under the Constitution, presidents traditionally review state affairs, Lithuania's internal and foreign policies in their annual addresses. Such addresses are traditionally delivered during the Seimas' spring session, the Seimas press service said.

In his annual address last year, Nauseda focused on Russia's war in Ukraine and stressed that it ended the period of relative peace in Lithuania and Europe.

Also, the president voiced Ukraine's post-war reconstruction as his personal commitment.

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Lithuania allocates EUR 10 mln to EIB Ukraine reconstruction fund

VILNIUS, Jun 16, BNS - Lithuania has allocated 10 million euros to a new European Investment Bank trust fund that will finance the reconstruction of Ukraine's key infrastructure in the near future, Lithuanian Deputy Finance Minister Mindaugas Liutvinskas said at the EIB's annual Board of Governors meeting on Friday, the Finance Ministry says.

The Lithuanian government supports the EIB's efforts to continue supporting Ukraine, Liutvinskas said, adding that new fund allows the EIB to continue implementing urgent infrastructure projects in the war-torn country.

"Lithuania is one of the first countries to announce its contribution to the fund by allocating 10 million euros. We hope that other EU countries will follow our suit," the vice minister was quoted as saying in the statement. 

The EIB proposed an EU initiative for Ukraine, including the establishment of a trust fund, in line with the European Council's call last December to step up support for Ukraine's critical infrastructure. The EIB's Board of Directors approved the fund in March.

The Lithuanian government decided to pay 10 million euros into the EIB fund on June 7.

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No extreme situation over drought for whole of Lithuania yet

VILNIUS, Jun 16, BNS – A state-level extreme situation over drought will not be declared in Lithuania yet, the country's National Crisis Management Center says.

The center made such the decision at a special meeting on Friday after listening to expert assessments from the Ministries of Agriculture, Finance, Environment, as well as the Fire and Rescue Department, and the State Forestry Service.

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Lithuanian center sees no need for nationwide extreme situation over drought for now  (further expands)

VILNIUS, Jun 16, BNS – Lithuania's National Crisis Management Center (NCMC) has decided not to propose declaring a state-level nationwide extreme situation over drought, at least for now, its head said on Friday, noting that the legal regime has already been put in place in ten municipalities. 

The center made the decision at a special meeting on Friday after listening to expert assessments from the Ministries of Agriculture, Finance, Environment, as well as the Fire and Rescue Department, and the State Forestry Service.

The decision was taken almost unanimously, according to Vilmantas Vitkauskas, the NCMC head. 

"Based on the data we received from different services – the agricultural, fire protection and fisheries sectors – we think that the situation does not yet warrant declaring a state-level extreme situation," he told reporters after the meeting.

Vitkauskas said that all possible steps are already being taken and that declaring a nationwide extreme situation would only be necessary if more sectors started to suffer from the drought.

The center said in a press release that the risks are currently under control, adding that it will continue to watch weather forecasts and will react promptly if the situation changes.

The ten municipalities that have already declared an extreme situation due to drought are the districts of Klaipeda, Kretinga, Vilkaviskis, Rokiskis, Plunge, Silute, Pakruojis, Sakiai, Telsiai and Mazeikiai. 

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Lithuania's army chief off to Germany to discuss assigned brigade's exercise plans

VILNIUS, Jun 16, BNS – Lithuania's Chief of Defense Valdemaras Rupsys is leaving for Germany on Friday to meet with Major General Heico Hubner, commander of the German 1st Armored Division, and discuss preparation for and joint exercises of the German brigade assigned to Lithuania.

Germany's 41st brigade assigned to Lithuania is subordinate to the German major general

Rupsys will also participate in the German Armed Forces Day commemorations in Oldenburg where the country's 1st Division is based, according to the Lithuanian army's statement on Friday.

During Rupsys' German visit, part of the Lithuania-assigned brigade will be redeployed to Lithuania to take part in Exercise Griffin Storm.

Last year, the Lithuanian and German leaders signed a joint communiqué on the assignment of a brigade to Lithuania, but only the brigade's Forward Command Element is now based in Lithuania, despite Vilnius' wish for the brigade's full permanent presence.

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Lithuanian organizers put European Figure Skating Championships budget at EUR 1.5 mln

KAUNAS, Lithuania, Jun 16, BNS – The 2024 ISU European Figure Skating Championships in Lithuania's second-biggest city of Kaunas may cost around 1.5 million euros, with the city and the state expected to contribute financially.

"The budget of the Championships will definitely be over one and a half million" euros, Vytautas Jasutis, president of the Lithuanian Skating Federation, said at a press conference on Friday.

Part of the funds will be provided by the International Skating Union (ISU) and some are expected to be raised through ticket sales, he said

Kaunas Deputy Mayor Mantas Jurgutis said that the municipality is ready to contribute to "the ambitious project".

"We will contribute as much as we can, (…) in terms of human resources, experience and material resources," he said.

On Monday, the ISU officially named Lithuania as the host of the ISU European Figure Skating Championships in 2024.

Kaunas will host the event on January 8-14.

Some 500 athletes and their teams are expected to arrive in the city for the tournament, with hotels already booked for them. Volunteers will be recruited for the event.

An ISU commission will come to Lithuania on July 4 to inspect and assess the infrastructure and preparations.

According to Jasutis, the Championships will be a great international advertisement for Kaunas, because figure skating is very popular in such countries as Japan, the United States, Canada and France.

The federation's president noted that the finals will be held on the symbolic date for Lithuania, January 13, when the nation marks the Day of Freedom Defenders to honor the victims of the Soviet crackdown on unarmed civilians in Vilnius on January 13, 1991. 

The initial plan was to hold the Championships in Budapest.

However, Hungary in early May withdrew from hosting the event due to Russia's war in Ukraine and "its impact on the economy and the energy prices that have a significant impact on the sport of skating".

By Austėja Masiokaitė-Liubinienė

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We’ll propose ban on some dual-use goods passing through Lithuania – minister

VILNIUS, Jun 16, BNS – Lithuania's Economy and Innovation Ministry will propose to the government to ban for a year the movement of dual-purpose goods overland through and from Lithuania as they may be used during the war against Ukraine.

Minister Ausrine Armonaite says there has been a disproportionate increase in the transit of such goods through Lithuania to some third countries, which is why they are believed to be moving to Russia.

"We have been collecting information for some time now on the transit through Lithuania of various sensitive goods made outside Lithuania and traveling through Lithuania to some distant countries. These goods are traveling overland through Belarus and Russia, and we are concerned about the significant increase in the flows of certain sensitive goods. We have evidence that some of these sensitive goods could be used in the war in Ukraine and end up in the war zone," the minister told reporters on Friday.

"Some of these goods are not sanctioned, some are sanctioned. The list is extensive but it mostly includes electronics," she said.

Data from Lithuania's State Data Agency shows, for example, exports of monitors and projectors to Kyrgyzstan increased by 3684 percent and those to Kazakhstan went up by 753 percent in 2022, compared to 2020, and exports of automated data processing machines to Georgia jumped by 1,882 percent.

Armonaite says the existing proposal is to restrict the shipment of 65 commodity codes, adding, however, that the list may change. 

"Some of the dual-use and potentially dual-use goods can be used both in household appliances and in armaments, and what the data from our services shows is that these goods, which we have already identified, the 65 codes, are also being used on the battlefield," the minister said.

Armonaite also points out that exports of goods made by Lithuanian producers to Eastern countries accounts for only 7 percent of total exports, and exports of prohibited goods are even lower.

However, Armonaite underlines that Lithuania's sole decision to stop the entry of these goods into Russia alone would not be enough as it would need a joint decision by all countries bordering Russia, including Latvia, Estonia, Finland and Norway.

By Goda Vileikytė

Editor: Roma Pakėnienė

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Rotational air defense best for efficient use of NATO resources – Lithuanian president

VILNIUS, Jun 16, BNS –  A rotational air defense model agreed by NATO defense ministers would make the most efficient use of the Alliance's resources, Lithuanian President Gitanas Nauseda's office said on Friday.

"The agreement reached by NATO defense ministers in Brussels on the rotational air defense model is an important document that Lithuania was seeking in the run-up to the NATO Vilnius Summit," the office said in a comment. 

"Such a model would allow the most efficient use of NATO countries' resources," it said.

Commenting on the agreement, Lithuanian Defense Minister Arvydas Anusauskas said earlier on Friday that the model "sets out the principles by which countries will be able to allocate ground-based air defense and aviation capabilities, starting with NATO's eastern flank". 

The minister said in a press release that Lithuania was ready to "ensure favorable conditions for the implementation of the rotational air defense model, including infrastructure, host nation support and personnel".

Anusauskas has said earlier that "it will be up to countries to decide" if they want to participate in the model.

Lithuania and the other Baltic countries have been pushing for some time for NATO to beef up air defense capabilities in the region, saying that this would allow upgrading the Alliance's Baltic air policing mission, launched almost 20 years ago, to an air defense mission.

Discussions on the issue have intensified in the wake of Russia's full-scale invasion of neighboring Ukraine.

Given the shortage of such weapons, however, the Baltic countries have proposed a rotational deployment of air defense capabilities, meaning that a different Western partner could send military equipment to a different Baltic country on a rotational basis.

"As part of his visits to NATO capitals, the president has discussed this issue with the Allies' leaders on more than one occasion," Nauseda's office said. 

"The president welcomes NATO ministers' decision which, if endorsed by all NATO leaders in Vilnius, will significantly strengthen the air defense of the Baltic states," it said. 

The Lithuanian capital will host the NATO summit on July 11-12.

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Upcoming events in Lithuania for Monday, June 19, 2023

VILNIUS, Jun 16, BNS – The following events are scheduled in Lithuania for Monday, June 19, 2023:

PRESIDENT Gitanas Nauseda to swear in Linas Pernavas, the new director of the Special Investigation Service, and his deputies at 11 a.m.  

PRIME MINISTER Ingrida Simonyte and TRANSPORT MINISTER Marius Skuodis to attend at 10 a.m. a ceremony launching the upgrading of the longest Via Baltica section between Marijampole and the border with Poland. 

FOREIGN MINISTER Gabrielius Landsbergis to meet with Sweden's ambassador to Lithuania. 

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