Lithuanian government: State of emergency declared due to smuggling balloons from Belarus

A state of emergency was declared in Lithuania today due to smuggling balloons from Belarus, the Lithuanian government announced.

A statement on the government's website said the state of emergency was declared "due to the continuing threat to the national security interests of the state and the danger to human life, health, property or the environment posed by balloons transporting smuggled goods from Belarus to the territory of Lithuania."

The government has appointed Interior Minister Vladislav Kondratovičius to manage operations during the state of emergency.

Lithuanian Prime Minister Inga Ruginijene said it was a hybrid attack: "In the fight against the Belarusian hybrid attack, we must take the strictest measures and defend the areas most affected by this attack. All relevant institutions are joining forces to prevent the threat posed by smuggling balloons. The public will not experience any inconvenience due to the declared situation."

The government statement says that the goal of introducing a state of emergency "is not only to control the threat to civil aviation, but also to ensure the interests of Lithuania's national security and closer coordination of the actions of institutions."

Interior Minister Kondratovicius stated that during a state of emergency, the army has certain rights that allow it to cooperate more effectively with the police.

The Lithuanian government says Vilnius Airport has been closed for "more than 60 hours" since October "due to the threat posed to civil aviation by smuggling balloons," affecting "over 350 flights and around 51.000 passengers."

The emergency was declared because one of the criteria was met multiple times, namely that civil aviation operations were repeatedly interrupted for more than six hours, the statement said.

In late October, Lithuania's border service closed the border with Belarus for 24 hours after flights at the capital's airport were repeatedly disrupted by balloons, and Lithuania's two border crossings with Belarus, in Medininkai and Šalčininkai, were closed for several hours.

Belarusian opposition leader Svetlana Tikhanovskaya, who lives in exile in Lithuania, told The Associated Press at the time that the balloon incidents were "another sign that the regime is using cigarette smuggling as a means of hybrid aggression against Europe."