Lithuania’s Vilnius Regional Court has postponed sentencing in the criminal case against the former owners of the now liquidated Snoras bank, Vladimir Antonov and Raimondas Baranauskas, until 5 November 2024, BNS reports. The Prosecutor General’s Office asked for both to be sentenced to 10.5 years in prison. The pretrial investigation lasted over 7 years, from…
Estonia’s new ambassador to Kazakhstan, Jaap Ora, has presented copies of his credentials to Kazakhstan’s Deputy Foreign Minister, Alibek Kuantyrov, Kazinform reports. Welcoming the ambassador to Astana, Kuantyrov noted with satisfaction the progressive development of Kazakh-Estonian relations in the political, economic, and cultural-humanitarian spheres. The parties also discussed interaction within international organisations.
Estonia may need to raise its defence spending to 5% of GDP to implement NATO’s new defence plans, Defence Minister Hanno Pevkur stated, ERR reports. He said that Estonia clearly needed to acquire more capabilities, including air defence systems and equipment to deal with chemical and biological weapons. The money needed would amount to EUR…
The number of Lithuanians travelling to Belarus has dropped by five times over two years, according to the State Border Guard Service (VSAT), BNS reports. In August 2024, Lithuanian citizens made 10,000 trips to Belarus, which was down from 33,000 a year earlier and 50,000 two years ago. Belarus enabled visa-free travel for Lithuanian citizens…
The Lithuanian Armed Forces (LGP) have received MP7 A2 submachine guns from German arms manufacturer Heckler & Koch, according to the Ministry of Defence, Army Recognition reports. The contract, signed in October 2023, is valued at EUR 1.56mn over a period of 72 months. The ministry selected the weapons for their tactical and technical features,…
Estonia’s new permanent representative to the EU is Kyllike Sillaste-Elling, ERR reports. Prior to her appointment, Sillaste-Elling served as deputy secretary general for political affairs at the Estonian Foreign Ministry. In 2017-2021, she was Estonia’s ambassador to NATO.
UAE-based messaging platform Telegram has deleted several channels and groups, including ones containing child pornography, following requests from Latvian State Police, LETA reports. However, Telegram has failed to provide information about the creators of the channels. The State Police noted that criminals in Latvia often use Telegram for planning and to sell illegal substances and…
The European Public Prosecutor’s Office (EPPO) is investigating former Lithuanian MEP Viktor Uspaskich (Viktoras Uspasckichas) for possible fraud, LRT reports. EPPO suspects Uspaskich, founder and leader of the opposition Labour Party, of hiring fake assistants to misappropriate more than EUR 500,000 from the European Parliament. In April 2024, police searched the offices of the Labour…
Lithuanian President Gitanas Nauseda expressed “serious doubts” about a proposal from EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell to sanction some Israeli ministers, BNS reports. Earlier, Borrell called for sanctions against Israeli ministers for statements that he said amounted to inciting war crimes. Nauseda pointed out that EU member states had very differing, sometimes diametrically opposing…