On Wednesday, the Cabinet will consider the ministry's proposal to extend the state of emergency along the entire Lithuania’s border zone with Russia and Belarus until the midnight of December 16, with the Seimas due to make the final decision, the ministry reported on Tuesday.
The state of emergency was introduced in the whole territory of Lithuania on February 24 in response to Russia's war in Ukraine. It is now set to expire on September 16.
According to Interior Minister Agne Bilotaite, threats to public order and security remain an issue in Lithuania amid Russia’s military aggression against Ukraine and its people.
“Unsafe and unstable geopolitical situation enables Russian and Belarusian public authorities to carry out hybrid attacks and stage most diverse provocations against Lithuania. In response, we must use necessary security measures to counter potential threats,” she said.
The minister noted that the Belarusian regime had recently stepped up the use of migrants as a weapon of hybrid aggression against Lithuania and reminded that nearly 6,000 migrants had been turned away by Lithuanian border guards on the border with Belarus so far this year.
Lithuania’s officers have said that Belarus’ officials have been tampering with the physical barrier installed on Lithuania’s border with Belarus and facilitating illegal migration to Lithuania and the EU by transporting migrants to the state border and leading them to the neighboring country's territory.
With the state of emergency in effect, some of the measures, which were introduced earlier, will remain in place, such as stepped-up border controls and checks at the border.
Moreover, a more stringent visa regime will stay in place, with the issue of visas to the citizens of Russia and Belarus to remain suspended, with certain exceptions.
Under the ministry’s proposal, the existing bans on the rebroadcasting of Russian and Belarusian TV programs in Lithuania, gatherings in support of Russia's war in Ukraine, and other restrictions will also remain in force.