Belarusian security services continue their malign activities on the border with Latvia, Guntis Pujats, head of the Latvian State Border Guard (VRS), announced, LETA reports. Speaking in an interview with LTV, Pujats said that Belarusian security services were actively involved in damaging Latvia’s border infrastructure to enable the illegal entry of migrants into the country….
The number of foreign citizens living in Lithuania totalled 195,500 at the end of the first half of 2023, which was an increase of more than 6,000 from 189,411 in the beginning of 2023, according to the Lithuanian Migration Department (LMD), BNS reports. Foreigners accounted for 6.83% of the total population, which was up from…
An increasing number of Lithuanian emigrants are considering going back, according to a poll carried out by the Employment Service (UzT) in May 2023, LRT reports. The survey showed that 55.1% of respondents would like to return to Lithuania, which is 14.6 percentage points higher than in 2020. The majority of those who wish to…
Estonia granted international protection to altogether 2,107 foreigners in 2022, which was up from the usual yearly average of around 50, according to data from the Ministry of Culture, ERR reports. The number of applications for international protection totalled 2,940, which was up from the usual 100. Also, Estonia granted temporary protection to 41,639 Ukrainian…
Lithuania reopened the Medininkai checkpoint on the border with Belarus in the evening of 9 July 2023, the State Border Guard Service (VSAT) announced, BNS reports. VSAT closed the checkpoint on 7 July 2023 after Belarusian border guards refused to allow a Pakistani national back into Belarus. The Pakistani man was travelling on a bus…
Latvia’s Prime Minister, Krisjanis Karins, and Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni met in Riga on 10 July 2023, The Baltic Times reports. The two prime ministers stressed the need for cooperation in strengthening the EU’s external borders and controlling external migration. Karins noted that Italy and Latvia were developing a similar understanding on migration and…
Foreigners outside Lithuania will be able to apply for national visas only through an external service provider selected by the Lithuanian Migration Department (LMD) as of 1 July 2023, BNS reports. Previously, such visa applications were processed by Lithuanian diplomatic missions, consular offices, or visa centres abroad. The new rules require that all applications for…
The situation on Lithuania’s borders with Belarus and Russia is quite calm ahead of the NATO summit in Vilnius, Rustamas Liubajevas, commander of Lithuania’s State Border Guard Service (VSAT), announced, The Baltic Times reports. He said that while there was no additional activity of Belarusian or Russian border guards at the moment, VSAT officers were…
The presidents of Latvia, Lithuania, and Poland — Egils Levits, Gitanas Nauseda, and Andrzej Duda — have sent a joint letter to NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg and leaders of NATO member states to warn them of the threats posed by the developments in Belarus, BNS reports. In the letter, the three presidents pointed out…