State of emergency in Lithuania? Smuggling balloons from Belarus is a problem

The Lithuanian authorities are considering introducing a state of emergency in connection with smuggling balloons from Belarus, which are disrupting air traffic in the country and threatening security, said Minister of Internal Affairs Władysław Kondratowicz.

– Such a proposal (to introduce a state of emergency – PAP) exists. (…) As an institution (the Ministry of the Interior), we are responsible for security (…) and we are already implementing certain measures during the state of emergency – the head of the ministry told journalists on Wednesday evening.

– If the situation does not improve, the possibility of declaring a state of emergency will be considered – he emphasized, adding that this would allow the activation of certain mechanisms and emergency actions.

The commander of the Lithuanian Armed Forces, General Raimundas Vaiksznoras, said on Thursday in an interview with the Zhiniu Radijas radio station that “currently, there are no specific solutions to combat balloons, and the means available to the military are too expensive to shoot down balloons.”

– We are looking for different ways – assured Vaiksznoras. He informed that Lithuania has appealed to domestic and foreign arms companies to submit proposals to combat weather balloons.

– Some Ukrainian prototypes have already been tested, but they do not fully work, he said.

Experts emphasize that weather balloons used for smuggling fly at high altitude, beyond the range of small arms, and the use of expensive weapons – missiles for combat aircraft or ground systems – is very expensive.

According to the Lithuanian National Crisis Management Center (NKVC), the airspace over Vilnius airport has been restricted more than 14 times over the last two months due to smuggling balloons coming from Belarus. During the night from Wednesday to Thursday, the operation of the Vilnius airport was interrupted three times.

The suspension of airport operations due to balloons has so far covered a total of over 320 flights and over 45,000. passengers, which is approximately 5 percent all passengers served during this period. According to the Lithuanian authorities, the balloons are sent from Belarus by cigarette smugglers, and the Belarusian authorities are to blame for not stopping this practice. The Lithuanian government considers these incidents to be hybrid attacks. Prime Minister Inga Ruginiene said on Thursday that such actions by Minsk could also be considered terrorism.

From Vilnius Aleksandra Akińczo (PAP)

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