Lithuania on Tuesday declared an “emergency situation” over an influx of balloons launched from neighbouring Belarus by smugglers, describing it as a “hybrid attack” orchestrated by Minsk.
The measure is one step below a “state of emergency”, which can only be declared by parliament when the country’s “constitutional order” is in danger.
Lithuania previously declared an emergency situation due to an influx of migrants across the border in 2021, and also described it as a hybrid attack.
“All institutions are joining forces to address the threat posed by smuggling balloons,” Lithuanian Prime Minister Inga Ruginiene said in a statement.
Interior Minister Vladislav Kondratovic, who will oversee efforts to counter the balloons, said the declaration allows the military to take part in border operations.
He told reporters that this was necessary to “bring services together and coordinate them”, and that it would not have any impact on the general public.
The balloons, which carry cigarettes and can fly up to 10 kilometres (six miles) high, have been crossing into Lithuania for several months.
As a result, Lithuania’s two largest airports, in Vilnius and Kaunas, have on several occasions been forced to halt operations, which officials claim is a deliberate attack on civil aviation.
Lithuania, a NATO and European Union member, has long accused Belarus, which is a close ally of Russia, of organising “hybrid warfare”, which combines conventional and unconventional tactics.
The balloon activity, which amplified in October, prompted the Baltic state to temporarily close its two border crossings with Belarus at the end of the month.
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