Lithuania’s Ministry of Defence will procure various types of unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) for EUR 36mn, BNS reports. The Defence Materiel Agency (GRA) has signed contracts to buy reconnaissance drones from Estonia’s Threod Systems and Latvia’s Edge Autonomy as well as quadcopter drones from Lithuania’s Deftools. Most of the drones will be delivered in autumn 2024…
Lithuanian MEP Waldemar Tomaszewski has taken legal action at the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) against Lithuanian authorities for discontinuing an investigation into derogatory comments made by TV presenter Arunas Valinskas, ELTA reports. Valinskas had called Tomaszewski, who leads the Electoral Action of Poles in Lithuania (LLRA), a “Colorado potato beetle” and suggested that…
Lithuania will acquire Polish-made Piorun air defence systems, Defence Minister Laurynas Kasciunas announced, BNS reports. Polish Defence Minister Wladyslaw Kosiniak-Kamysz proposed that Lithuania procure the new systems jointly with Poland. Kasciunas said that Lithuania was “very pleased” with the offer. Lithuania already has an older version of the Polish-made Grom air defence system but will…
The Lithuanian government has approved a draft resolution to withdraw from the Convention on Cluster Munitions, allowing to acquire, stockpile, and use these weapons, BNS reports. The proposal from the Defence Ministry follows the US decision to supply cluster munitions to Ukraine and is based on the argument that these munitions are highly effective for…
Representatives from Lithuania’s five largest commercial banks — Citadele, Luminor, OP Corporate Bank, SEB Bank, and Swedbank — met with Prime Minister Ingrida Simonyte to express dissatisfaction with the extension of the windfall tax on bank profits, BNS reports. They voiced concerns over the unpredictability of the investment environment and the lack of cooperation between…
A private meeting between Gabrielius Landsbergis, chairman of Lithuania’s conservative Homeland Union (TS-LKD), and MP Eugenijus Gentvilas of the Lithuanian Liberal Movement (LLS) has highlighted tensions within the country’s coalition government, LRT reports. The meeting, initiated by Landsbergis, occurred after a period of strained communication. The opposition surmised that the meeting likely involved the possible…
Underage marriages still occur in Lithuania primarily due to teenage pregnancies, despite a decline in recent years, LRT reports. Legislation allows courts to lower the legal marriage age of 18 in cases such as pregnancy. However, this practice has been criticised by the United Nations and children’s rights advocates, who argue that minors cannot give…
Lithuania’s State Data Protection Inspectorate (VDAI) has imposed a fine of EUR 2.39mn on the local online marketplace for second-hand goods, Vinted, for violating consumer data protection laws, BNS reports. The fine follows complaints from French and Polish supervisory authorities and pertains to breaches of the EU’s General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR). Vinted was found…
Lithuanian MEP Viktor Uspaskich has returned to the Labour Party as its interim chairman, BNS reports. Uspaskich was reinstated following the resignation of MP Valentinas Bukauskas and after the opposition party’s poor performance in recent presidential and European Parliament elections. The Labour Party’s council has formed a group to negotiate potential coalitions for the upcoming…
