The Lithuanian National Defense Committee plans to consider which Belarusian assets could be frozen or confiscated in response to the growing threat posed by smuggled weather balloons.
Lithuanian President Gitanas Nausėda said on the 7th of December that he had spoken to the National Defense Committee about air defense and that other issues would be discussed, such as examining what Belarusian assets are in Lithuania and what options there are for freezing or confiscating them.
Marius Česnulevičius, the president’s security adviser, said in early December that the council, which includes the country’s top political and defense officials, could meet in the middle of the month, but did not specify what countermeasures would be recommended.
Weather balloons containing cigarettes launched by Belarusian smugglers have repeatedly forced the closure of Vilnius airport in recent months, and Kaunas airport was also closed once.
Lithuania responded to the activities of Belarusian lawbreakers by closing its border for several weeks.
After closing the border, Minsk did not allow a large number of trucks registered in Lithuania to leave the country, and even after opening the border, it has not been possible to achieve their return. Belarus has requested talks at the level of Foreign Ministries. Nausėda indicated that Minsk’s demands mean that it wants to discuss sanctions.
The Lithuanian president said that Belarus wants the results of the 2020 elections to be officially recognized and the sanctions against it lifted. He added that any efforts by Lithuanians to get closer to the Belarusian regime at the political level will ultimately come down to one issue – the lifting of sanctions on mineral fertilizers.
Read the full article in English here: https://www.lrt.lt/en/news-in-english/19/2770145/lithuania-to-consider-freezing-belarusian-assets-over-smuggler-balloon-crisis-president
Read also: Smuggler balloons continue to fly – Lithuania declares state of emergency