Lithuania has almost 8,000 foreign students with temporary residence permits, according to the Lithuanian Migration Department (LMD), BNS reports. Nearly 1,400 Indian citizens, 959 Belarusians, and 709 Pakistanis are currently doing their studies in Lithuania. So far in 2024, LMD has issued over 3,000 temporary residence permits for permanent studies to foreigners, compared to 4,400…
Lithuania’s Court of Appeal has rejected the appeal of Jonava district mayor Mindaugas Sinkevicius against a lower court ruling that found him guilty of abuse of office, forgery of documents, and misappropriation of municipal funds, BNS reports. He was accused of having the local council pay for some of his personal expenses over 2019-2023. The…
Over 150 public figures in Lithuania have signed an appeal to President Gitanas Nauseda and political parties, urging them to reject antisemitic politicians, LRT reports. Earlier, top politicians and Jewish community leaders warned of continuing antisemitism in Lithuania, BNS reported. Prime Minister Ingrida Simonyte pointed to antisemitic statements by former MP Remigijus Zemaitaitis, leader of…
The Lithuanian government has launched a pilot scheme to combat the use of narcotics and smoking in schools, LRT reports. Seven schools in Vilnius, Klaipeda, and Alytus will take part in the pilot programme, placing students under closer surveillance. The aim is to develop a joint response plan to prevent drug use and smoking. The…
Lithuania has established official diplomatic relations with the Kingdom of Tonga, BNS reports. The official ceremony took place in conjunction with the United Nations General Assembly meeting in New York. Until now, Tonga was one of the six remaining UN member states with which Lithuania had no diplomatic relations. Lithuanian Foreign Minister Gabrielius Landsbergis thanked…
The Maltese-flagged ship, Ruby, carrying a cargo of ammonium nitrate from Russia, is no longer headed for Lithuania’s port of Klaipeda, BNS reports. Algis Latakas, CEO of Klaipeda State Seaport, announced that the ship had removed Klaipeda as its final destination at the port’s request. He said that the ship would name its new destination…
The presidents of the three Baltic States — Estonia’s Alar Karis, Latvia’s Edgars Rinkevics, and Lithuania’s Gitanas Nauseda — have called for reforming the United Nations Security Council (UNSC), BNS reported. They stressed the need to support Ukraine and hold Russia accountable for its military aggression. Karis pointed to the UNSC’s current inability to resolve conflicts,…
A resident of Lithuania’s port city of Klaipeda has been charged with violation of public order after painting Russian war symbols on several buildings, BNS reports. The man painted the letter Z, which symbolises support for Russia’s war of aggression against Ukraine, on several buildings, cars, billboards, and a church bell in Klaipeda, BNS reported….
Estonia and Finland are drawing up joint plans for increased maritime defence, Major General Andrus Merilo, commander of the Estonian Defence Forces (EDF), revealed, ERR reports. Speaking in an interview with Helsingin Sanomat, Merilo said that the goal was to establish specific plans to close the Gulf of Finland to Russian ships if necessary. Earlier,…