The EU is preparing new sanctions against Belarus, following repeated incursions of smuggler balloons from Belarus into Lithuania, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen announced, BNS reports. Earlier, Lithuanian Foreign Minister Kestutis Budrys urged the EU not to allow the Belarusian regime to blackmail and escape its international isolation and have sanctions lifted, ELTA…
Lithuania has submitted an application for EUR 6.375bn of support from the European Commission’s Security Action for Europe (SAFE) instrument to finance around 50 defence projects, BNS reports. Deputy Defence Minister Karolis Aleksa said that Lithuania would use the EU funds to acquire tanks or tracked infantry fighting vehicles for a national army division. Also,…
Estonia expects European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen to propose a solution this week to use frozen Russian assets to help Ukraine, Foreign Minister Margus Tsahkna stated, ERR reports. He noted that a legal solution already existed to provide guarantees to Belgium against claims from Russia. Tsahkna insisted that there was no need for…
The coordination committee of the European Commission’s Connecting Europe Facility has approved another EUR 295.5mn of funding for the Baltic railway project, Rail Baltica, LSM reports. Of the total, EUR 47.1mn will go to Estonia, EUR 153.5mn to Latvia, and EUR 94.9mn to Lithuania. The project coordinator, RB Rail, said that the funds would be…
The World Trade Organization (WTO) has again suspended the case over China’s trade restrictions on Lithuania, following a second request from the European Commission (EC), BNS reports. Apparently, EC lawyers have failed to find sufficient proof of Chinese restrictions on Lithuanian goods. The case may now be halted for a year and then terminated if…
Finnish President Alexander Stubb and Estonian Prime Minister Kristen Michal will host a summit of Baltic rim NATO countries in Helsinki on 14 January 2025 to discuss the security of critical undersea infrastructure and Russia’s shadow fleet, ERR reports. Political leaders from all Baltic rim NATO countries, NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte, and European Commission…
Nordic and Baltic foreign ministers have agreed to help step up international support for Moldova after Russia’s state-owned energy corporation, Gazprom, stopped gas supplies to the country, ERR reports. In a joint statement, the eight ministers said that they would work with the European Commission and other key partners to help Moldova. The ministers said…
Lithuania should not support the ratification of the EU-Mercosur Association Agreement, Lithuania’s Agriculture Minister, Ignas Hofmanas, stated, Baltic News Network reports. Speaking in an interview with LRT, Hofmanas insisted that Lithuania should wait for the European Commission’s “detailed explanation” of the free trade agreement. Earlier, the rural affairs committee of the Lithuanian parliament, the Seimas,…
European news portal Politico ranked the performance of Lithuania’s EU commissioner, Virginijus Sinkevicius, highest of the three Baltic members of the outgoing European Commission, ERR reports. The outlet gave Sinkevicius, who served as the European Commissioner for Environment in 2019-2024, a score of A minus. Latvia’s Valdis Dombrovskis, who is staying on as EC Vice…