Some internet domains used by Russia to meddle in the upcoming US presidential elections were purchased using the Lithuanian cryptocurrency payment platform, CoinGate, according to the US Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), BNS reports. CoinGate is owned by Vilnius-based Decentralized (former Virtualios Valiutos), which established a subsidiary, CoinGate, in the US in 2021. Some of…
This is the first ever edition of Baltic Week, our curated free newsletter of top news items from the three Baltic States over the past week (or so). Please note that this new feature will be quite experimental for now, and that this first edition will probably be much longer than subsequent editions. You can…
The Latvia-based commercial bank, Citadele, posted a net profit of EUR 50.9mn in the Baltic States in the first half of 2024, which was down 21% from EUR 64.5mn in the same period of 2023, bne IntelliNews reports. The bank’s operating income rose by 2% to EUR 116.1mn, with interest revenue increasing by 9% to…
Baltic transport ministers called for increased EU funding for strategic transport infrastructure projects, The Baltic Times reports. The ministers insisted that the Connecting Europe Facility has to remain one of the key instruments in the EU’s next multiannual financial framwork as of 2028, with sufficient funding for cross-border transport, energy, and electronic communications projects. They…
The number of nights spent by foreign visitors in the three Baltic capitals was highest in Tallinn in the first half of 2024, according to data from the Latvian Hotel and Restaurant Association (LVRA), BNS reports. Foreigners spent 1.075 million nights at accommodation establishments in Tallinn, followed by Riga with 851,000 and Vilnius with 699,000….
Latvia’s national air carrier, airBaltic, will open flights to several new destinations from the three Baltic capitals in summer 2025, including five from Tallinn, four from Riga, and seven from Vilnius, LRT reports. The company will offer flights from Tallinn to Tirana in Albania, to Hamburg in Germany, to Reykjavik in Iceland, and to Barcelona…
Israeli President Isaac Herzog has postponed his planned visit to Lithuania amid further tensions in the Middle East, Asta Skaisgiryte, chief foreign policy adviser to Lithuanian President Gitanas Nauseda, announced, BNS reports. Speaking in an interview with Ziniu Radijas, Skaisgiryte said that Lithuania wanted the situation in the Middle East to “calm down a bit,”…
Lithuanian Foreign Minister Gabrielius Landsbergis criticised Mongolia for the visit of Russian President Vladimir Putin to the country, BNS reports. Landsbergis said that Mongolia’s refusal to arrest Putin despite the International Criminal Court’s (ICC) arrest warrant was “another crack in the system based on international law.” The ICC issued the arrest warrant on Putin over…
The average monthly wage in the Baltic States rose the fastest in Lithuania in 2023, according to research agency Figure Baltic Advisory’s study, LETA reports. The average wage rose by 8.8% in Lithuania, 8.2% in Latvia, and 7.3% in Estonia over a year. The agency projects that the monthly basic salary will rise by 6.3%…