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Lithuania to Close Belarus Border, Allows Military Use of Force Against Aerial Incursions
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![Photo of Dariia Mykhailenko]( "Photo of Dariia Mykhailenko")
Lithuania has developed a firm response plan to repeated airspace violations originating from Belarus, including the threat of permanently closing its border and authorizing the military to shoot down incoming aerial objects.
The new strategy was announced by Lithuanian Prime Minister Inga Ruginiene following an emergency meeting of the National Security Commission, according to LRT on October 27.
The action follows a disruptive period where Vilnius Airport was forced to suspend operations four times in the last week—including three consecutive days—due to weather balloons launched from Belarus. These balloons, often carrying contraband, affected approximately 95 flights and nearly 14,000 passengers in total.
In response to the incursions, the State Border Guard Service announced the immediate closure of border crossings with Belarus. Prime Minister Ruginiene confirmed that the government has prepared a decision to close the border indefinitely, though exceptions for diplomatic movement and citizens of Lithuania and the EU will remain.
“We not only discussed what happened over the weekend, what worked, and what measures did not work, but we also developed a clear algorithm for our further actions,” the official stated.
Ruginiene stated that while diplomats, diplomatic mail, and citizens of Lithuania and the EU would still be allowed to enter from Belarus, all other movement would be stopped. She added that by implementing these measures, they were sending a clear signal to Belarus that no hybrid attacks would be tolerated, and Lithuania would take the strictest possible action to halt such incursions.
The Lithuanian military will now take “all necessary measures“ to stop incoming air balloons and will use “kinetic means” to shoot them down, a measure the Prime Minister did not detail. The police and the State Security Department of Lithuania will also intensify joint efforts to combat smuggling.
Earlier, it was reported that the border between Lithuania and Belarus will be fully closed if there are any repeat incidents involving large numbers of balloons crossing the airspace.
