Lithuania’s Interior Ministry has proposed declaring a nationwide state-level emergency in response to an increased incursion of smuggler balloons from neighbouring Belarus into Lithuanian airspace, BNS reports. The government is expected to decide on the proposal next week. According to the Interior Ministry, altogether 599 smuggler balloons and 197 drones have entered Lithuanian airspace so…
The Lithuanian government has decided to accept half of allocated migrants into the country and pay for the remainder under the EU’s migration and asylum pact, the Ministry of Interior announced, ELTA reports. The ministry said that the decision was based on an assessment of national capacity, the regional migration situation, and the ability of…
Altogether 126 people in Estonia renounced their Russian citizenship in the first eight months of 2025, according to data from the Estonian Ministry of Interior, ERR reports. In the whole of 2024, only 107 residents in Estonia gave up their Russian passports. The Russian embassy in Tallinn did not accept applications in the period from…
Latvia finally launched an early warning or cell broadcast system on 1 July 2025 after delays in the procurement process, LETA reports. The system was developed by Meditec for EUR 3.4mn under a contract with the Ministry of Interior’s Information Centre. The system will warn residents and visitors about natural disasters, military threats, or other…
Estonia’s Ministry of Interior expects the Estonian Orthodox Church of the Moscow Patriarchate (MPEÕK) to leave the jurisdiction of the Russian Orthodox Church before summer 2025, ERR reports. Earlier, the ministry submitted a draft legislative amendment to the Estonian parliament, the Riigikogu, which would ban religious associations directed by countries that threaten Estonia’s public order,…
Estonia’s population decreased by 2,750 people across all municipalities in 2024, according to data from the Ministry of Interior, ERR reports. The population only increased in three counties: Harjumaa, Tartumaa, and Hiiumaa. Estonian capital Tallinn’s population rose by 256 people to 461,602 people, whereas the population of the country’s second-largest city, Tartu, fell by 13…
The three Baltic States have imposed entry bans on 11 Georgian officials due to their involvement in suppressing mass protests against the Georgian government’s decision to delay the country’s EU accession talks, Civil Georgia reports. Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania urged the EU to levy sanctions on Georgian officials responsible for the violent police crackdown, Devdiscourse…
Lithuania has introduced stricter rules on residence permit applications through external service providers as of 1 December 2024, BNS reports. From now on, only citizens of countries with an office of the external service provider can use their services. Citizens of other countries can apply for temporary residency permits at an office in another country…
Several ministries in Estonia have criticised the Ministry of Climate’s proposed new climate law, ERR reports. The ministries argued that the bill’s structure and purpose were unclear, and that the bill failed to define the rights and obligations under the proposed law. Interior Minister Lauri Läänemets and Justice Minister Liisa Pakosta said that the bill…