Overview
- Lithuania announced the emergency after repeated airspace incursions that government statements link to balloons launched from Belarus.
- Interior Minister Vladislavas Kondratovičius said the measures will be limited in scope and are intended to tighten coordination among institutions.
- Repeated closures at Vilnius International Airport have been reported since October, totaling more than 60 hours and affecting over 350 flights and about 51,000 passengers.
- Authorities say the balloons have carried contraband such as cigarettes, and officials in Vilnius characterize the activity as hybrid tactics directed at disrupting civil aviation.
- The government says prosecutors opened an investigation as intelligence services assess possible links to Minsk, while Belarus denies responsibility and calls for negotiations.