Lithuania: President finally asks to revoke treaties with Russia, Belarus

Lithuanian President Gitanas Nauseda has submitted to parliament a proposal to revoke three treaties with Russia and Belarus on economic cooperation, BNS reports. Nauseda proposed denouncing treaties on the promotion and protection of investments with Belarus and Russia as well as a treaty to avoid double taxation with Russia. Lithuania signed all three treaties in…

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Lithuania: Defence Minister calls for raising defence budget to 4% of GDP

Lithuania should aim to raise its defence budget to 4% of GDP, Defence Minister Laurynas Kasciunas stated, BNS reports. He said that this would allow Lithuania to maintain existing capabilities and acquire long-range air defence systems and combat helicopters. Earlier, President Gitanas Nauseda urged to raise defence spending to at least 3.5% of GDP. Lithuania’s…

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Lithuania: President criticised over treaties with Russia, Belarus

Lithuania’s Foreign Minister, Gabrielius Landsbergis, criticised President Gitanas Nauseda for delaying a decision to end investment protection treaties with Russia and Belarus, BNS reports. Landsbergis noted that the government had proposed revoking the treaties back in May 2024. He insisted that Nauseda would have had enough time to refer the issue to the parliament, the…

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Lithuania: Russia’s “reign of terror” in Crimea must end: President

Lithuanian President Gitanas Nauseda is visiting Ukraine to attend the fourth annual summit of the Crimea Platform, BNS reports. Speaking at the event, Nauseda demanded that Russia release all illegally imprisoned Ukrainians and Crimean Tatars. He noted that Russia had implemented “brutal colonial policies” in Crimea for the past ten years. Russia’s reign of terror…

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Lithuania: Lithuanian, Polish presidents to deepen defence ties

The presidents of Lithuania and Poland, Gitanas Nauseda and Andrzej Duda, have signed a declaration on deepening bilateral defence and security ties, Baltic News Network reports. The presidents made the declaration during Nauseda’s official visit to Poland. At the same time, Lithuanian and Polish officials signed cooperation agreements on cyber security and defence industry, TVP…

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Lithuania: President urges defence spending of at least 3.5% of GDP

Lithuania should spend at least 3.5% of its GDP on defence each year, President Gitanas Nauseda stated, BNS reports. He said that military spending should be increased “year after year” to implement plans to modernise the Lithuanian Armed Forces (LGP) and host a full German brigade in the country. Meanwhile, Viktorija Cmilyte-Nielsen, speaker of the Lithuanian…

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Lithuania: Defence spending to be raised over 3% of GDP: President

Lithuania plans to allocate more than 3% of its GDP to defence, President Gitanas Nauseda announced, BNS reports. Speaking during a joint press conference with Polish President Andrzej Duda in Warsaw, Nauseda said that Lithuania would follow Poland’s example of raising defence spending. Also, he said that the two countries would soon begin training Ukrainian…

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Lithuania: Homeland Union chair urges to block radicals from power

Lithuanian Foreign Minister Gabrielius Landsbergis, chairman of the ruling Homeland Union (TS-LKD), called on President Gitanas Nauseda to set up a “cordon sanitaire” to prevent radical political forces from coming to power after the parliamentary elections in October 2024, BNS reports. Speaking in an interview with Ziniu Radijas, Landsbergis warned that pandering to radical political…

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Lithuania: Turkish bid to join BRICS “undermines trust”: Foreign Minister

Türkiye’s application to join the BRICS group undermines trust in the country, Lithuanian Foreign Minister Gabrielius Landsbergis stated, BNS reports. He pointed to questions on how to reconcile positions within NATO between countries that support Ukraine and those that are pro-Russian. “All this undermines trust,” he added. Meanwhile, Asta Skaisgiryte, chief foreign policy adviser to…

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