Rustamas Liubajevas’ comment follows the most recent incident when a weather balloon carrying contraband cigarettes fell down in Vilnius Airport on Saturday.
The official said border violations by weather balloons have been observed since April this year, with some 250 cases recorded in September alone.
„We started to notice a rise in balloon deployments in April and the numbers have been steadily increasing. In August, 117 such cases were recorded, and in September we had around 250 cases,“ Liubajevas told ELTA on Monday.
Services’ response to the smuggling of contraband by weather balloons is defined in a non-public document signed with the Lithuanian Armed Forces, according to the VSAT head.
„As these weather balloons rise very high above the ground, up to 5 kilometres away, we are not in a position to act. We do not have weapons or armaments used in air defence,“ Liubajevas explained.
The VSAT has already asked the Ministry of the Interior to improve legislation and allow border guards to use firearms in similar cases, he said, expecting researchers to come up with possible technical solutions for destroying balloons.
Liubajevas also said border officers have more freedom to act when it comes to unmanned aerial vehicles. Additional anti-drone equipment is scheduled to be delivered to the VSAT before December, he added.
A weather balloon used by cigarette smugglers crashed at Vilnius Airport late Saturday. Packs containing 1,250 Belarusian cigarettes were found attached to the balloon, VSAT spokesman Giedrius Mišutis told ELTA on Sunday.