EU agrees to expand sanctions against Belarus over balloon incursion into Lithuania

EU to expand sanctions against Belarus over balloons

On Wednesday, EU ambassadors agreed to extend sanctions against Belarus in connection with the intrusion of balloons into Lithuania.

This was reported on social media by Radio Liberty's European affairs editor Rikard Jozwiak, according to Censor.NET.

"The ambassadors have just agreed to extend sanctions against Belarus to counteract the incursions of balloons. (This decision) will be formally approved by foreign ministers next week," he said.

According to Lithuanian officials, a total of 315 balloons have flown into Lithuania from Belarus since June, with the peak occurring in October, when there were 71 violations of airspace.

Between October and December, Lithuania's two largest airports, in Vilnius and Kaunas, were forced to suspend operations 15 times, affecting more than 320 flights and over 45,000 passengers. In early December, Vilnius Airport was closed for almost 12 hours due to an incident involving a single bullet.

At present, details regarding specific sanctions remain unknown.

What preceded it?

On the night of October 26-27, Vilnius International Airport temporarily suspended flight services. This is the third consecutive day and the fourth time this week that flight restrictions have been imposed.
Lithuania had previously warned that it could completely close its border in response.
On October 27, the checkpoint in Salechniky (Shalchininkai on the Lithuanian side) did not resume operations, and in Medniki (Medininkai), only certain categories of travelers were allowed to pass, which did not include most Belarusians.
On October 27, the Belarusian Ministry of Foreign Affairs delivered a note of protest to Lithuanian Chargé d'Affaires Erikas Vilkancys over the closure of the border, which was "carried out without any prior notice."
The Lithuanian Ministry of Internal Affairs has proposed completely closing the border with Belarus for one month.
On October 29, the Lithuanian government decided to close the Medininkai and Šalčininkai border crossing points on the border with Belarus until November 30, with the possibility of extension.
The Lithuanian government has declared a state of emergency across the country due to balloons from Belarus disrupting aviation. This will allow the military to obtain special powers to coordinate actions more effectively.