Arya News - Lithuania has declared a “state of emergency” in response to waves of smuggler balloons being launched from Belarus as part of Russia’s hybrid war campaign.
Lithuania’s Vilnius Airport has been closed nine times due to balloons flown from Belarus disrupting operations - Lithuanian border guards intercepted 11 balloons with contraband cigarettes from Belarus, seizing 18,000 packs
Lithuania has declared a “state of emergency” in response to waves of smuggler balloons being launched from Belarus as part of Russia’s hybrid war campaign.
The order will give the army, the police and border force new powers to stop and search vehicles and carry out document checks, as they hunt for the rogue balloonists.
The recent wave of several hundred balloon launches has forced Vilnius airport to close at least nine times , leading to air traffic and travel chaos for Lithuanians.
The balloons are launched by smugglers who operate on both sides of the border between Lithuania and Belarus, a key ally of Russia.
They are usually attached to crates of cigarettes, launched from Belarus, and then collected in Lithuania, where the cigarettes are sold on the black market.
However, senior Lithuanian officials have warned The Telegraph that the balloons pose a serious security risk, as they may be probing for air-defence gaps, and can in theory be fitted with spy cameras or incendiary devices.
The balloons pose a serious security risk as they are suspected of seeking air-defence gaps
“The state of emergency is announced not only due to civil aviation disruptions but also due to interests of national security,” Vladislav Kondratovic, the interior minister of Lithuania, announced on Tuesday.
Belarus, which is led by authoritarian president Alexander Lukashenko , denied it was responsible for the balloons and counter-claimed that Lithuania was using drones to drop “extremist material” into their country, which Vilnius denies.
Lithuanian officials have previously told The Telegraph that the balloon swarms were a “hybrid attack” on the West, launched with the tacit approval of Lukashenko.
Belarusian president Alexander Lukashenko (left) is a close ally of Vladimir Putin - Gavriil Grigorov/AP
Under the state of emergency, the Lithuanian army will be granted greater powers, as well as police, border guards and the security forces.
This would include the right to limit access to territory in Lithuania, such as closing off the border regions, searching vehicles or documents and arresting those who refuse to cooperate.
However, the government says the measures will be “narrowly targeted” and should not cause any serious disruption for the public.
Lithuania previously declared a state of emergency in 2021 in response to Belarus sending migrants across the border , in an attempt to cause major disruption.
Officials believe that the balloon-smuggling operation is a cover for a joint effort by Minsk and Moscow to map out air-defence gaps in Lithuania , as tensions rise over a possible war with Nato.
“If you are preparing for war, you need to know what Lithuania’s reaction times are,” Eitvydas Bajarūnas, Lithuania’s former ambassador to the UK and Ambassador-at-Large for Hybrid Threats, told The Telegraph last month.
“These balloons are not military, but they are testing Nato’s response times and its air-defence reactions; they are looking for gaps in Lithuania, in Nato and in the EU,” he added.
A Lithuanian official added: “The Belarusian regime is responsible for what we are assessing as a hybrid attack aimed at disrupting activities of our government and society.”
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