Lithuania: Farmers stage big tractor rally in central Vilnius

Farmers in Lithuania staged a protest rally in the country’s capital, Vilnius, on 23-25 January 2024, Baltic News Network reported. Around 3,000 farmers gathered in front of the government building with over 1,500 tractors and forestry trucks blocking the city’s main street. The farmers oppose a rise in the excise duty on LPG, a ban on using untaxed diesel fuel for non-agricultural machinery, requirements to restore grasslands, and expansion of protective zones. Also, the farmers demand a guaranteed minimum purchase price for raw milk and a stop to transit shipments of Russian grain. Meanwhile, environmental activists held a counter rally, urging the government not to relent on environmental protection, BNS reported. Nevertheless, the government intends to cancel the excise hike on LPG and restore the tax exemption on green diesel.