Lithuania will shoot down weather probes flying from Belarus. Wants to increase sanctions and punishment

Lithuania has decided to shoot down weather probes flying from Belarus. The border between the two countries will be closed indefinitely, and new sanctions against Minsk are being discussed. This was announced by Prime Minister Inga Rugijnene, reports LRT.

According to her, the meeting of the National Security Commission resulted in a "clear algorithm" for Lithuania's further actions. Together with the EU, a package of additional sanctions against Belarus will be agreed.

"This will be done in the near future. We are also actively consulting and communicating with our allies and neighbors, Poland and Latvia. Any actions we take are also coordinated with them, we are not a separate state, we are part of NATO and the EU. We coordinate everything we do with them," Ruginen said .

There will be exceptions to the closure of the borders with Belarus. Diplomats and diplomatic pouches will be allowed to travel, and Lithuanian and EU citizens will be allowed to enter the country from Belarus. For all others, travel is closed.

Starting October 27, the military will take "all necessary measures" to stop smuggled weather balloons. In particular, they will use kinetic means to shoot them down.

"In this way, we are sending a signal that we are ready to take even the most severe measures in case of violation of our airspace," the Prime Minister emphasized .

on October 29, the government will present new draft amendments to the Criminal Code. The highest punishment for smuggling will be a prison term.

"If earlier we talked about fines and their increase, now, today, we have discussed that this may include imprisonment," the Prime Minister said .

In the evening of October 27, buses will start running between Vilnius and Kaunas airports for the convenience of passengers. The country will also start tracking the direction of the weather balloons to monitor them and plan the operation of airports.

• on October 24, Lithuania temporarily closed the border with Belarus and shut down two airports because of weather probes with contraband. A similar incident occurred on October 22.
• On October 26, the Lithuanian prime minister proposed to permanently close the border with Belarus and restrict transit to Kaliningrad.
• On the evening of October 26, the fourth such incident in a week occurred, which temporarily shut down the airport in Vilnius and indefinitely closed the two existing border crossings with Belarus.
• On this day, Lithuania recorded many more balloons with contraband than on previous occasions – more than 60. The country shaved off its security commission.