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…
Latvian Foreign Minister Baiba Braze has called for severing economic ties with Russia and Belarus “to the maximum,” LSM reports. She insisted that Latvia must continue to decontaminate itself from Russian influence, stressing that economic security was as important for national security as military security. Braze reiterated the need for robust EU sanctions against Russia…
Estonia has implemented an EU-wide ban on the entry of vehicles registered in Belarus, ERR reports. The new restriction does not apply in humanitarian cases and to cars with diplomatic licence plates. Latvia and Lithuania are implementing similar bans. Estonia’s Foreign Minister, Margus Tsahkna, noted that the Belarusian regime was directly contributing to Russia’s war…
Lithuania will enforce an EU ban on the entry of vehicles registered in Belarus as of 18 July 2024, LRT reports. The new ban applies to all passenger cars, regardless of the nationality of the owner or driver. Belarusian citizens with valid visas or residence permits can bring their own cars into Lithuania for personal…
Vehicles registered in Belarus are banned from entering Latvia as of 16 July 2024, the State Revenue Service (VID) announced, LSM reports. The ban applies to automotive vehicles as well as trailers and semi-trailers. Vehicles registered in Belarus that are already in Latvia will have to be reregistered. Non-compliant vehicles can be confiscated and transferred…
The Baltic power transmission system operators (TSOs) have notified Russia and Belarus of their intention to decouple from the Russian-controlled IPS/UPS electricity system in February 2025, ERR reports. Estonia’s Elering, Latvia’s Augstsprieguma Tikls (AST), and Lithuania’s Litgrid informed the Russian and Belarusian TSOs that they would not extend the BRELL parallel energy system operation agreement….
The Baltic power transmission system operators (TSO) will notify Russia and Belarus about their decision to withdraw from the so-called BRELL agreement and the Moscow-controlled IPS/UPS transmission system in the coming weeks, Lithuania’s Ministry of Energy announced, BNS reports. The Baltic TSOs are fully ready to synchronise their power grids with the continental European system…
The Lithuanian government plans to invest around EUR 17.56mn in counter-mobility measures over 2024-2027, the Ministry of Defence announced, BNS reports. The plan is to deploy counter-mobility defence installations along the border with Belarus and Russia’s Kaliningrad (Königsberg) region by April 2025, reserve barriers on major national roads and bridges by November 2025, and drainage…
Lithuanian Interior Minister Agne Bilotaite has requested financial support from the EU to strengthen the protection of the country’s border with Russia, BNS reports. In a letter to EU Commissioner for Home Affairs Ylva Johansson, Bilotaite emphasised the need to modernise and update border surveillance systems, with costs estimated at nearly EUR 16mn and required…