Lithuania has closed its largest airport and land border crossings with Belarus following the latest incident involving balloons launched from Belarusian territory.
This comes after airspace violations involving balloons carrying contraband cigarettes which had previously forced the closure of airspace earlier in the month.
Newsweek has contacted the Belarusian and Lithuanian foreign ministries for comment.
Why It Matters
Lithuania shares a 420-mile border with Belarus, whose ruler, Alexander Lukashenko, is Vladimir Putin’s closest ally. Although the balloon incident has not been directly linked to Moscow, Lithuania’s border closures add to tensions spiked by accusations of Russian incursions into NATO airspace amid Moscow’s aggression in Ukraine.
What To Know
Lithuania’s prime minister Inga Ruginiene announced the closure of Salcininkai and Medininkai, the country’s two operational border crossings with Belarus, after the third incident this month involving balloons launched from Belarusian territory.
In a Facebook post, Ruginiene said that “smuggling balloons” had been launched from Belarus toward Lithuania and that airports in Vilnius and Kaunas were suspended.
Previous airspace violations involving balloons carrying contraband cigarettes caused closures of airspace above Vilnius on October 5 and 21, leading to the cancellation of dozens of flights.
It adds to tensions along NATO’s eastern flank which saw Vilnius accuse Russia of violating NATO airspace on Thursday with a Sukhoi Su-30 fighter jet and an Ilyushin Il-78 Aerial Tanker, although the Russian defense ministry denied this, saying that its aircraft remained in international airspace.
Estonia invoked Article 4 of NATO’s charter for further talks with alliance members after it said that Russian fighter aircraft entered its airspace in September.
Moscow has been accused of hybrid warfare measures in the region; German media outlet Kieler Nachrichten reported Thursday that the Russian amphibious Ropucha-class landing ship Aleksandr Shabalin anchored off the German coast and blocked a key shipping route between the Baltic and the North Seas.
The Institute for the Study of War (ISW) said on Friday the incident and the recent air incursion linked to Moscow show Kremlin plans for covert and overt attacks against Europe to prepare for a possible NATO-Russia war.
What People Are Saying
Lithuania’s prime minister Inga Ruginiene said on Facebook: “A large group of smuggled meteorological balloons were launched again from Belarus to Lithuania—because of that, both Vilnius and Kaunas airports had to be temporarily closed.”
“The most important thing is that the residents of Lithuania would not be threatened – that is why appropriate decisions are being taken.”
What Happens Next
The border crossings were scheduled to reopen at midday Saturday, according to Ruginiene, who said the country’s National Security Commission would meet next week to discuss how to tackle the smugglers. Meanwhile, tensions remain high, with further accusations of airspace violations linked to Russia likely to continue.
