Virus, economy top concerns as Lithuanians vote in runoff

October 24, 2020

VILNIUS, Lithuania (AP) — The coronavirus pandemic is the main domestic issue as Lithuania holds a parliamentary runoff election Sunday, and the winner will have to tackle a rapidly deteriorating public health sector and high unemployment.

The election is widely expected to bring about a change in the southernmost Baltic nation, which has been governed by a center-left coalition for four years. In the first round of this month's voting, three center-right opposition parties finished with a combined lead.

In the second round, 68 of the 141 seats in Lithuania's legislative assembly, the Seimas, are up for grabs. The other seats were allotted after the Oct. 11 first round of voting. More than 7% of Lithuania’s 2.5 million voters have already cast early ballots for the runoff, according to election authorities who set up special drive-in polling stations because of the pandemic.

Lithuania fared comparatively well during the first wave of the pandemic, but like elsewhere in Europe this fall, the nation of 3 million people has reported worrying spikes in recent weeks. Overall, it has seen over 9,100 infections and 126 reported deaths.

After weeks of hesitation, the Lithuanian government imposed a quarantine in 12 of 60 districts that starts on Monday. Opposition lawmakers have criticized the government for not doing enough to stabilize the latest outbreak.

The economic impact of the pandemic has hit Lithuania hard: it's unemployment rate was over 14% in September compared to 9% in February. The outgoing parliament had drafted a 2021 budget with a 4-billion euro ($4.7 billion) deficit.

The election's first round resulted in the conservative Homeland Union party winning 23 seats, or 24.8% of the vote, while the ruling Farmers and Greens party only grabbed 16 seats, or 17.5%. “If the conservatives are successful on Sunday, they would very likely try to form a new ruling coalition with other two center-right partners — the Freedom Party and the Liberal movement,” Vilnius University political scientist Tomas Janeliunas told The Associated Press. “Yet this would be a rather fragile majority.”

Some 54 Homeland Union candidates made it into the runoff, while the Farmers and Greens have 32 contenders. Together, the Freedom Party and the Liberal movement have 21 candidates. Two other center-left parties that have crossed the 5% support threshold into parliament could join the Farmers and Greens in a new coalition but they have few candidates in the runoff.

Lithuania, a member of the European Union and NATO, has kept strong democratic traditions and sustainable economic growth since declaring independence from the Soviet Union in 1990. It has also played a major diplomatic role as the protests in Belarus, its southern neighbor, unfold against that nation’s authoritarian leader.

Lithuanians to choose new parliament amid virus tensions

October 10, 2020

VILNIUS, Lithuania (AP) — Lithuanian voters will choose a new parliament Sunday for a nation that has seen a recent surge in COVID-19 cases and whose center-right coalition government has faced strong criticism over soaring virus-related unemployment.

The Lithuanian Farmers and Greens Union, the party that leads a majority coalition with three smaller partners, hopes to remain in power in the southernmost Baltic republic. Pre-election polls showed they are marginally ahead of the opposition conservative Homeland Union-Christian Democrats, the Social Democrats, the populist Labor party and the center-right Liberal Movement.

Five or six parties are expected to cross the 5% threshold to enter the 141-seat Seimas parliament but none is likely to get more than 20% support, so horse-trading talks to form a coalition are expected after the election.

The recent sharp rise in virus infections and new restrictions may force many voters to stay at home, affecting turnout among Lithuania’s 2.4 million registered voters. A second round of voting has been set for Oct. 25 in constituencies where no candidate gets a majority.

Many Lithuanians complain that government did not do enough to help companies during the nation's coronavirus lockdown, as the unemployment rate jumped from 9% in February to more than 14% in October. Others say the strict health regulations focused on fighting the virus left thousands of other patients without proper access to health services.

Supporters of the ruling coalition say this coastal Baltic country was among the lucky ones that suffered relatively lightly in the pandemic. So far Lithuania has seen 5,500 confirmed coronavirus cases and and just above 100 deaths.

Lithuania has kept strong democratic traditions since regaining independence from the Soviet Union in 1990. It has also played a major role as the protests in neighboring Belarus unfold against that nation's authoritarian leader.

Lithuania has granted shelter to Belarus opposition figure Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya, who fled Belarus after challenging President Alexander Lukashenko in the country's Aug. 9 presidential vote. Officials said Lukashenko won a sixth term in office but opposition members say the election was riddled with fraud.

Together with its Baltic neighbors Estonia and Latvia, Lithuania swiftly imposed sanctions against Belarusian leaders, and the European Union — a 27-nation bloc that includes the three Baltic nations — eventually followed suit with sanctions. Belarus is not an EU member.

Lithuanian economist wins presidential election

May 26, 2019

VILNIUS, Lithuania (AP) — Prominent economist Gitanas Nauseda won Lithuania's presidential election after his opponent conceded defeat Sunday. "I am grateful to the people who voted today and I can promise that politics will be different now in Lithuania. Everybody deserves a better life in our beautiful country," Nauseda told a cheering crowd of supporters.

With 1,521 of the country's 1,972 voting districts counted late Sunday, data provided by Lithuania's Central Electoral Commission showed 55-year-old Gitanas Nauseda had taken 70% of the votes. His opponent, Ingrida Simonyte, a former finance minister, congratulated Nauseda.

"That is our people's will and I respect it. I already called Mr. Nauseda and congratulated him with this victory wishing him to be a good president for all the people of Lithuania," Simonyte told reporters.

The president's main task is to oversee Lithuania's foreign and security policy including acting as the supreme commander of the armed forces.

Lithuanians choose a president to take over from 'Iron Lady'

May 12, 2019

VILNIUS, Lithuania (AP) — Voters are going to the polls in Lithuania to elect a president to succeed Dalia Grybauskaite, who has completed her maximum two terms in office. Nine candidates are taking part in Sunday's vote, which could require a runoff in two weeks' time.

The leading candidates include Prime Minister Saulius Skvernelis, former banking economist Gitanas Nauseda and former Finance Minister Ingrida Simonyte. The campaign has focused on domestic issues such as the economy, corruption and social welfare, even though foreign policy and defense are two of the presidency's main purviews.

Grybauskaite's anti-Russia views, no-nonsense style and karate black belt earned her the "Iron Lady" label previously applied to Margaret Thatcher when she was British prime minister. Voters are also having their say in a referendum on a constitutional amendment to allow dual citizenship for hundreds of thousands of Lithuanians living abroad.

Voters to pick successor of Lithuania's popular 'Iron Lady'

May 10, 2019

VILNIUS, Lithuania (AP) — Nine candidates are vying in an election Sunday to become Lithuania's next president, including a well-known economist, a former finance minister and the incumbent prime minister.

Term limits require the Baltic country's current head of state, President Dalia Grybauskaite, to step down after two five-year terms. The election to choose the popular Grybauskaite's successor could go to a second-round vote.

The campaign has focused on domestic issues such as the economy, corruption and social welfare, even though foreign policy and defense are two of the presidency's main purviews. The leading candidates include Prime Minister Saulius Skvernelis, 48; former banking economist Gitanas Nauseda, 54; and former Finance Minister Ingrida Simonyte, 44.

In recent public opinion polls, Simonyte has been in front with support from more than 26% of likely voters, but Nauseda and Skvernelis aren't far behind. Along with picking their president, voters on Sunday face a referendum on a constitutional amendment to allow dual citizenship for hundreds of thousands of Lithuanians living abroad.

A presidential runoff would be held May 26, the same day Lithuanians vote for their EU parliament representatives and another referendum on reducing the number of lawmakers in the 141-seat Seimas assembly.

Skvernelis, who was a police officer before he entered politics, has suggested opening a dialogue with Russia, a departure from the recent governments in Vilnius, and floated the idea of moving the Lithuanian Embassy in Israel from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem.

If the prime minister wins, it would be seen as "a concentration of political powers" for his ruling Peasant Greens Union party, said Tomas Janeliunas, a professor at the Institute of International Relations and Political Science at Vilnius University.

Grybauskaite's anti-Russia views, no-nonsense style and karate black belt earned her the "Iron Lady" label previously applied to Margaret Thatcher when she was British prime minister. Lithuania today is very different from the one Grybauskaite became president of in 2009.

"Ten years ago, our country was severely affected by the financial crisis and fully dependent on Russian gas, with no real existing NATO defense plans," she told The Associated Press. Now Lithuania is a "strong and prosperous state" that has diversified its energy supply and like its Baltic neighbors, joined NATO as well as the European Union, Grybauskaite said.

A vital job of successor will be staying alert to Russia's military activity in the Baltic Sea region, she said. "The geopolitical situation will remain tense," the outgoing leader said. "Therefore, further measures to increase military security, defense, and deterrence capabilities, fight aggressive propaganda, cyber and other hybrid threats will remain among the top priorities."

Lithuanian civilians fearing Russian attack train for worst

December 01, 2016

VILNIUS, Lithuania (AP) — Rasa Miskinyte spent the day in a freezing forest near Lithuania's capital learning to gather water from a pond with a condom, to filter it through sand, charcoal and cloth, and to make her own stove from a beer can. She thought some basic survival skills would be helpful if Russian troops ever entered Vilnius and her family escaped into the woods.

"Russia is a very dangerous kind of neighbor," said Miskinyte, a 53-year-old film producer. "They are always aiming at us." Across Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia, fears are intensifying that Moscow, after displaying its military might in Georgia, Ukraine and now Syria, could have the Baltic states in its sights next. Russian President Vladimir Putin has warned he wouldn't hesitate to defend Russians wherever they live — words that feel like threats since significant numbers of ethnic Russians live in the Baltics.

Whether the danger is real or just bluster remains to be seen. But in Lithuania, a country that experienced a Russian occupation before, some people aren't waiting to find out. Young Lithuanian civilians are learning counterinsurgency tactics on weekends. Others, like Miskinyte, have taken steps to protect themselves. The government, in response to pleas from a fearful public, has issued a preparation manual.

Rimvydas Matuzonis directs a project that teaches weekend guerrilla warfare courses. He explained the resolve to be ready by citing a popular saying in the forests of Dzukija, the southern region where his father grew up.

"Spring will come, the cuckoo will sing and we will pave our roads with the corpses of Russian soldiers," Matuzonis said. To be sure, some in the Baltic states feel confident their NATO membership would protect them from a Russian invasion. Others describe a dull anxiety that flares up only sometimes. But there are some who are truly afraid and already preparing for the worst.

When Russia annexed the Crimean Peninsula from Ukraine in 2014, Miskinyte packed a bag with bread, salt and some essential items and planned to flee to a village where she has a house. She has urged relatives to join her there, if her fears are confirmed.

"In the village you always survive," Miskinyte said. "There is land, there are vegetables. There is everything there." Exacerbating the dread lately is Moscow's move to build up troops and nuclear-capable missiles in Kaliningrad, a Russian region wedged between NATO members Lithuania and Poland.

Poland is creating a so-called Territorial Defense Force to train thousands of volunteers in cyber-warfare and other low-intensity forms of combat seen in Ukraine. Some of the new volunteers will be assigned to protect Polish territory near Kaliningrad.

But the foreboding is no doubt greater in the ex-Soviet republics, whose decision to regain independence when the Soviet empire collapsed humiliated the Kremlin. In response to calls for guidance from citizens fearing war, Lithuania's Defense Ministry issued a manual that includes information on survival skills and recognizing Russian weaponry.

The best way to prevent war is to "demonstrate to the aggressor that we are ready to fight for our freedom, for every centimeter of our land," Defense Minister Juozas Olekas said. "The capabilities, the readiness — this is the only way to stop Russian aggression in the region," Olekas said in an interview with The Associated Press.

Lithuania re-established a conscript army last year, but so many citizens have volunteered for military duty that a draft hasn't been necessary. Many civilians in the hugely patriotic nation of 3 million people remain eager to do their part.

Last weekend, in an area of pine woods and fields outside Vilnius, a group of young men donned military fatigues, loaded pellets into replica assault rifles and practiced counterinsurgency tactics. Using armored vehicles and other retired military equipment, they stormed a pretend enemy position amid explosions and thick smoke. Target practice with real weapons followed.

Many of the men said military exercises have been a hobby for years, a way to release stress after a week in the office. But their instructors from Defense Project, a warfare training group, make clear the drills carry a new urgency given Russia's assertiveness.

"We have a border not only with Russia, but also with Belarus, and we should be aware that the little green men might appear from other borders or even from within," said Zilvinas Pastarnokas, a 45-year-old retired soldier who helped found Defense Project.

Fears of stewing Russian aggression have raised questions about the loyalties of the ethnic Russians who live in Lithuania and make up about 6 percent of the population. Many settled there when Lithuania was part of the Soviet Union and remained.

Lithuanian officials insist they are not under any suspicion. Yet many Lithuanians worry if war ever came, ethnic Russians would side with Moscow. "The Russians will absolutely be on Putin's side," said Miskinyte, the film producer who took the survival course.

For their part, Lithuania's ethnic Russians decry what they call the "anti-Russian propaganda" of Lithuanian officials, and many hold pro-Kremlin views. "Everything in the Lithuanian press is represented from the one side — that the Russians are the bad guys, that the Russians are coming, that Putin is always bad," complained Roman Nutsubidze, 30,

Nutsubidze, expressed frustration that the West doesn't see Putin as a good leader who has restored national pride. He said he loves Lithuania, but thinks Putin has no reason to want to seize the Baltic states.

"I don't see what he has done bad," Nutsubidze said. "I don't actually see it."

Lithuania acquires sniper rifles

Vilnius, Lithuania (UPI)
Nov 8, 2016

Lithuania's military has received new British-made sniper rifles which will be distributed to troops by the end of the year.

The weapons are AXMC sniper rifles manufactured by Accuracy International Ltd under a contract worth more than $1.4 million.

The AXMC rifles can use either .338 Lapua Magnum or .308 Win ammunition through a barrel change, even in field conditions.

The Lithuanian Land Force previously did not have sniper rifles and used an FN SCAR-H PR semi-automatic precision rifles instead. AXMC sniper rifles double the effective range of the FN's 1,968 feet.

"Accuracy International of the United Kingdom cherishes old traditions of weapon making and is respected worldwide," said MSgt. Ernestas Kuckailis, an expert of sniper and precision rifles with Juozas Lukša Warfare Training Center, Lithuanian Land Force. "The weapons it manufactures are of high quality and reliability in any conditions, including arctic or desert.

AXMC rifle has a powerful Kahles sight and night vision. The new weapon will allow Lithuanian Land Force personnel destroy targets at nearly 1.5-kilometer [nearly 1 mile] distance both during the day and at night."

Source: Space Daily.
Link: http://www.spacedaily.com/reports/Lithuania_acquires_sniper_rifles_999.html.

Lithuania signs missile agreement with Norway

by Geoff Ziezulewicz
Vilnius, Lithuania (UPI)
Oct 24, 2016

Lithuania has signed an agreement worth $108 million with Norway for the procurement of the Norwegian Advanced Surface-to-Air Missile System, or NASAMS.

The deal, signed last week by the ministries of defense for each country, covers the sale as well as future support Norway would render to Lithuania in developing midrange air defense capabilities, the Lithuanian ministry said in a statement.

This acquisition and others will combine into an air defense system that offers Lithuania aerial surveillance and control, early warning for ground units and the ability to destroy targets if needed.

Two defense batteries will be acquired under the deal.

The midrange NASAMS equipment is scheduled to be delivered to Lithuania by 2020.

NASAMS was co-developed by Norwegian company Kongsberg and Raytheon...

Source: Space Daily.
Link: http://www.spacedaily.com/reports/Lithuania_signs_missile_agreement_with_Norway_999.html.

Agrarian newcomers claim victory in Lithuanian election

October 24, 2016

VILNIUS, Lithuania (AP) — Lithuania's political newcomers, representing an agrarian union, claimed victory after Sunday's runoff in parliamentary elections as voters turned their backs on the ruling Social Democrats, blamed for being unable to revive a sluggish economy and held responsible for a sharp rise in prices following the adoption of the euro.

The Peasants and Green Union, led by 46-year-old millionaire farmer Ramunas Karbauskis were expected to end up with 56 seats in the 141-member Parliament, according to preliminary results provided by the Central Electoral Committee, in the biggest victory by a single party in 20 years.

The conservative Homeland Union-Christian Democrats would have 30 seats, while the incumbent ruling party, the Social Democrats, would take 18 seats, the preliminary results show. The remaining seats were split among several smaller parties.

At stake in Sunday's runoff were 68 seats. All the other seats had already been allotted after a first round of balloting on Oct. 9. In the first round, the ruling Social Democrats came in third with 13 seats, behind the Homeland Union-Christian Democrats, which won 20 seats, and the Peasants and Green Union with 19 seats.

Expecting a poor showing, Prime Minister Algirdas Butkevicius acknowledged earlier Sunday "a kind of defeat" if his party was forced into opposition. "We should have focused more on the campaign, but we were working instead and hoped people would notice the progress," Butkevicius told reporters, when casting his ballot at a school in central Vilnius. He was referring to recent policies which the Social Democrats launched after gradually losing support since the last election in 2012, including a controversial labor law that favored employers and measures on transforming the energy sector, leading to a sharp drop in consumers' utility bills.

The preliminary results indicate that the agrarian bloc will likely form the basis of the next majority ruling coalition, but its partners were unclear. "We are not ruling out any possibilities, even a broad coalition if we agree on the major challenge: how to stop citizens fleeing Lithuania," Karbauskis, the party's chairman, told reporters. He has said, however, that he would not take the post of prime minister in any coalition.

Lithuania, like its Baltic neighbors Latvia and Estonia, regained independence after splitting from the Soviet Union in 1990 and has since lost nearly a quarter of its pre-independence population of 3.7 million with many seeking work elsewhere in Europe. It is a member of the 28-nation European Union and was hit hard by the global economic recession in 2009-2010. At the beginning of last year it adopted the EU's common currency, the euro, which has sharply increased prices while wages and pensions remain among the lowest in the bloc.

Both government and opposition parties had promised to raise living standards in the country of 2.9 million. The conservatives, who campaigned heavily for change were hoping for sizable gains in the election. Their leader Gabrielius Landsbergis, at age 34, had been expected to become Europe's youngest prime minister. He is the grandson of Vytautas Landsbergis, Lithuania's first head of state after the 1991 breakup of the Soviet Union and considered by many as a national hero.

"This means that our message about necessary changes was not able to reach many voters. But again, this is just the beginning of the long road we will have to travel," Landsbergis said, visibly disappointed by the result.

Lithuanians vote in what is expected to be a close race

October 23, 2016

VILNIUS, Lithuania (AP) — Lithuanians voted Sunday in a runoff election that is expected to bring the center-right opposition to power and end the rule of the current Social Democrat-coalition, with the incumbents taking the heat for a sluggish economy and a sharp rise in prices following the adoption of the euro currency.

At stake are 68 seats in the 141-member Parliament, with all the other seats already assigned after a first round of balloting on Oct. 9. Sunday's runoff is expected to be close, which could complicate government formation talks.

In the first round, the ruling Social Democrats came in third with 13 seats, behind both a conservative group, the Homeland Union-Christian Democrats, which won 20 seats, and the agrarian Peasants and Green Union with 19 seats.

"I voted for a conservative candidate today because the current Cabinet is a bunch of sleepy bureaucrats who have no idea how to get this country moving forward," said Vytas Kazlauskas, a 30-year-old teacher in Vilnius. "We all look at Estonia with envy; they had real reforms while we just keep on talking about them."

Casting his ballot at a high school in the Lithuanian capital, Prime Minister Algirdas Butkevicius acknowledged that it is likely his party could end up in the opposition, which would be "a kind of defeat."

"We should have focused more on the campaign, but we were working instead and hoped people would notice the progress," Butkevicius told reporters. He was referring to recent policies which the Social Democrats launched after gradually losing support since the last election in 2012, including a controversial labor law that favored employers and measures that focused heavily on transforming the energy sector, which led to a sharp drop in consumers' utility bills.

Lithuania, like its Baltic neighbors Latvia and Estonia, regained independence after splitting from the Soviet Union in 1990 and has since lost more than a quarter of its pre-independence population of 3.7 million as many have sought work elsewhere in Europe. It is a member of the 28-nation European Union and was hit hard by the global economic recession in 2009-2010. At the beginning of last year it adopted the EU's common currency, the euro, which has sharply increased prices while wages and pensions remain among the lowest in the bloc.

Both government and opposition parties have promised to raise living standards in the country of 2.9 million. The conservatives, who campaigned heavily for change, are led by Gabrielius Landsbergis, who at 34 is trying to become Europe's youngest prime minister. He is the grandson of Vytautas Landsbergis, Lithuania's first head of state after the 1991 breakup of the Soviet Union and considered by many as a national hero.

The leader of the agrarian party is a 46-year-old farmer millionaire, Ramunas Karbauskis, who has sponsored village-themed TV shows, musical festivals and built up his popularity by promoting ethnic Lithuanian culture.

The two men have exchanged harsh rhetoric since the first round, signaling that coalition talks between their parties — if not totally out of the question — would be long and complicated.

Lithuania opposition ahead in polls deemed blow to leftists

17 October 2016 Monday

Early results showed Lithuania's opposition ahead in the polls Monday, a blow to the Baltic state's leftwing government, with voters bitter over economic inequality and mass emigration.

With results in from three-quarters of polling stations, the national elections commission said the centrist Lithuanian Peasants and Green Union party (LGPU) had garnered 23 percent of the votes, while the Homeland Union conservatives took 19 percent.

"It was a protest vote against the ruling coalition," said Ramunas Vilpisauskas, director of the Institute of International Relations and Political Science in the capital Vilnius.

He said a new labour law which makes it easier to hire and fire employees as well as corruption allegations had alienated voters already angered by low wages and mass emigration to Western Europe.

The election commission earlier tallied turnout at 50 percent of the 2.5 million eligible voters.

Gabrielius Landsbergis, leader of the Homeland Union, has vowed to seek a new center-right coalition with the LPGU.

Positioning itself as kingmaker, the LGPU said it was open for talks with both conservatives and leftists, but said it would not clinch any deal before the decisive runoff round in two weeks.

Seventy members of Lithuania's 141-seat parliament are elected by proportional representation from party lists in the first round. The remaining 71 are chosen in single-member constituency races.

Initial results showed LGPU, led by popular former national police chief Saulius Skvernelis, claimed 19 seats compared to 17 won by the conservatives and 13 for Social Democrats.

Source: World Bulletin.
Link: http://www.worldbulletin.net/todays-news/178790/lithuania-opposition-ahead-in-polls-deemed-blow-to-leftists.

Social Democrats face challengers in Lithuania's election

October 09, 2016

VILNIUS, Lithuania (AP) — Lithuanians were voting Sunday in the first round of a parliamentary election, with the governing Social Democrats facing challenges from conservatives and an agrarian party.

Lithuania, the biggest of the three Baltic countries, has struggled to stem emigration since regaining independence in the early 1990s and joining the European Union in 2004. Both the Social Democrats, which have led a coalition government since 2012, and opposition parties have promised to raise living standards in the country of 2.9 million.

Many Lithuanians complain that prices have gone up since the country introduced the euro, the EU's common currency, in 2015, while salaries have not. The country was hit hard by the global economic meltdown and is just emerging from a recession.

Pre-election polls showed the Social Democrats in the lead, ahead of the agrarian Peasant and Green Party and the conservative Homeland Union-Christian Democrats in the race for parliament's 141 seats.

Prime Minister Algirdas Butkevicius leads the Social Democrats while the conservatives are led by Gabrielius Landsbergis, who at 34 is trying to become Europe's youngest prime minister. He is the grandson of Vytautas Landsbergis, Lithuania's first head of state after the 1991 breakup of the Soviet Union.

Lithuania remains highly suspicious of Russia and tense relations with Moscow are expected to continue regardless of the outcome of the election. Polling stations will close at 8 p.m. (1700 GMT). A second round will be held on Oct. 23 in constituencies where no candidate wins a majority of votes.

No party is likely to get more than 20 percent support so coalition-building talks are sure to follow the election.

Lithuania receives surplus vehicles from the Netherlands

Vilnius, Lithuania (UPI)
Aug 18, 2016

Lithuania is touting its bilateral military partnership with the Netherlands, which has resulted in the procurement of surplus military vehicles.

Over the past six months, Lithuania has received about 200 combat and medium-lift Mercedes-Benz GD vehicles, trucks and other military vehicles from the Netherlands to supplement and update the Baltic country's military fleet.

The vehicles were delivered in several phases and more equipment is scheduled for delivery this year and next under the $7.89 million deal.

"This is the second military equipment procurement contract between Lithuania and the Netherlands," Lithuania's Ministry of National Defense said. "In 2012-2013 the Lithuanian Armed Forces bought vehicles, communications containers and airport service equipment (to replace outdated and not cost-efficient equipment then used in the Lithuanian Armed Forces) from the Netherlands Armed Forces for a good price."

Lithuanian Minister of National Defense Juozas Olekas and Ambassador of the Kingdom of the Netherlands in Lithuania Bert van der Lingen were meeting in the country Thursday to celebrate the successful cooperation between the two countries and future cooperation.

Source: Space War.
Link: http://www.spacewar.com/reports/Lithuania_receives_surplus_vehicles_from_the_Netherlands_999.html.

Afghan migrant flown to Lithuania after social media plea

April 06, 2016

VILNIUS, Lithuania (AP) — An Afghan man who worked for Lithuanian troops in Afghanistan has been transferred to the Baltic country from a migrant camp in Greece after pleading for help on social media.

Abdul Basir Yousofy arrived in Vilnius late Wednesday after the government gave him a five-day visa and paid for his airfare from Greece. The 22-year-old touched the hearts of many Lithuanians with a recent online video in which he asked the country's president and people for help in getting out of the Greek camp. He spoke in broken Lithuanian, which he had picked up working for Lithuanian troops in Afghanistan's Ghor province.

He can now formally apply for asylum in Lithuania, which has pledged to accept just over 1,100 refugees by 2017 under a European Union plan.

Lithuania, Poland, Ukraine to launch joint brigade in 2017

Warsaw (AFP)
Jan 25, 2016

Lithuania, Poland and Ukraine on Monday said a joint brigade of 4,000 troops would be operational next year, as the region maintains a wary eye on Russia and its role in the Ukraine conflict.

"The multinational brigade is a sign, symbol and very clear signal to anyone who would want to undermine peace in Europe," Polish Defense Minister Antoni Macierewicz said in a ministry statement.

While Lithuania and Poland are NATO and EU members, Ukraine is not but has been a part of the defense alliance's Partnership for Peace eastern outreach program since 1994.

Macierewicz spoke after meeting with his counterparts from Lithuania and Ukraine, Juozas Olekas and Stepan Poltorak respectively, in the eastern Polish city of Lublin.

"We see this brigade as a driving force that will improve our army," Poltorak said, quoted by the Polish news agency PAP.

He added that "the brigade will be fully operational in 2017", while the Polish ministry statement said the military unit would "reach its full combat capability in January 2017".

The three countries signed an agreement in September 2014 to form the so-called Litpolukrbrig brigade, which will mainly take part in peacekeeping operations.

The brigade has been in the works since 2007, but it is being put into action at a time of anxiety among Eastern European states once controlled by Moscow.

Poland and the three Baltic states, which include Lithuania, have been on edge since Russia annexed the Crimean peninsula from Ukraine in March 2014.

The Baltic trio and Poland, which will host a NATO summit in July, have called on the Western defense alliance to reinforce its presence in the region because of their concern over Russia.

The brigade troops will be deployed in their own countries and will join forces during exercises and joint operations. The headquarters will be in Lublin.

Source: Space War.
Link: http://www.spacewar.com/reports/Lithuania_Poland_Ukraine_to_launch_joint_brigade_in_2017_999.html.

NATO opens military center in Lithuania amid Ukraine crisis

September 03, 2015

VILNIUS, Lithuania (AP) — Fighter jets roaring overhead, NATO on Thursday inaugurated a military center in the Lithuanian capital amid growing concerns in the Baltic countries over Russia's military presence.

NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg, who joined Lithuanian President Dalia Grybauskaite for the opening ceremony, described the new unit as a "big step forward toward greater solidarity, greater strength and greater readiness."

The NATO force integration unit in Vilnius is one of six small headquarters — manned by some 40 staff each — that opened this month in Bulgaria, Estonia, Latvia, Poland and Romania, as part of the alliance's biggest reinforcement of collective defense since the end of the Cold War.

Grybauskaite welcomed the new units, saying they would ensure the quick and effective movement of troops. "And they help send a very clear message — no NATO ally stands alone," she said, pointing to Russian aggression in Ukraine as threatening the security of Europe. "This is why we have decided to bolster our security."

Lithuania and its Baltic neighbors, Latvia and Estonia, were occupied for nearly five decades by the Soviet Union. After regaining independence in 1991 they joined the European Union and NATO in 2004, but continue to be suspicious of Moscow's intentions.

Earlier this year, Lithuania distributed wartime survival manuals to schools across the country — a 98-page booklet with advice on building basement shelters to handling hostage dramas and evacuating from fighting zones. It also organized survival camps for families, teaching them to shoot and how to survive in war zones and threatening situations.

In February, the government restored compulsory military service for men aged 19 to 27, but is reconsidering the measure after a flood of applications from volunteers wanting to serve in the armed forces, expected to reach 3,000 by the end of the year.

Drilling at a parade ground in the coastal city of Klaipeda, Junior Pvt. Saulius Sirvinskas learns how to disassemble, clean and repair his rifle until it becomes second nature. "I love my country and it's like I'm returning the favor to my country by serving this military duty," he said.

Lithuanian Defense Minister Juozas Olekas recalled the events in Hungary and Czechoslovakia during the Soviet era and said that similar aggression in Ukraine now should be met by "showing our readiness" to act.

"This is the only answer which can be understood by Russian President (Vladimir) Putin," he said in an interview with The Associated Press earlier this week. Although Moscow has made no moves against its small Baltic neighbors, which all have sizeable Russian-speaking minorities, they are worried about its increased military presence in the vicinity of the outpost of Kaliningrad, partly a Russian military base, sandwiched between Lithuania and Poland.

NATO, which patrols the airspace of the three Baltic allies, has reported more than 400 intercepts by NATO fighter jets of Russian military aircraft flying near the borders of the Baltic countries last year, an increase of 50 percent over 2013.

3 Baltic nations request permanent NATO troop presence

May 14, 2015

VILNIUS, Lithuania (AP) — The three Baltic countries — Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania — are asking NATO to permanently deploy ground troops to their nations as a deterrent against an increasingly assertive Russia.

The countries' defense chiefs requested a brigade-size unit of NATO troops — one battalion of 700-800 troops in each country — in a joint letter this week to the supreme allied commander in Europe, said Capt. Mindaugas Neimontas, a spokesman for Lithuania's chief of defense.

"It is necessary because of the security situation," Neimontas told The Associated Press on Thursday. "It's not getting better in our region, so it will be a deterrent." The Baltic countries — former Soviet republics that regained independence amid the collapse of the Soviet Union over two decades ago — have been alarmed by Moscow's intervention in Ukraine and the increasing activity of Russian forces in the Baltic Sea.

NATO forces, including from the U.S., have also stepped up military exercises in the Baltics and other Eastern European nations in the wake of the Ukraine crisis. NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg said the request would be "assessed carefully," but gave no commitment beyond that.

Speaking to reporters at a meeting of NATO foreign ministers in Antalya, Turkey, Stoltenberg underlined that the alliance has already increased its military presence in the Baltic region and is in the process of establishing quick response forces that will make it easier to reinforce the Baltic states if needed.

"The main message is that NATO is ready. And NATO is prepared. And we will defend all allies against any threat," Stoltenberg said. Vladimir Chizhov, Russia's ambassador to the European Union, said the Baltic request was motivated by "local politics rather than a genuine security situation."

"Because nobody is threatening the Baltics — at least, nobody that I know of," he said.

Karl Ritter in Stockholm and John-Thor Dahlburg in Brussels contributed to this report.

Lithuania marks 25th anniversary of Soviet exit

March 11, 2015

VILNIUS, Lithuania (AP) — Lithuania has marked the 25th anniversary of its declaration of independence from the Soviet Union amid warnings that its freedom could once again come under threat.

In celebrations overshadowed by Moscow's intervention in Ukraine — another former Soviet republic — Lithuanian independence leader Vytautas Landsbergis told lawmakers Wednesday not to take freedom for granted or "our success story may soon become a temporary success story."

Current President Dalia Grybauskaite urged Lithuanians to show strength and courage as "the rattle of the guns is heard" from the east. Lithuania, now a member of NATO and the European Union, became the first Soviet republic to declare independence on March 11, 1990. But it only achieved its freedom over a year later after a failed communist coup in Moscow.

Ghost town: As Lithuania joins euro, concern over emigration

December 31, 2014

VILNIUS, Lithuania (AP) — When Antanas Zubavicius turns the light on in his run-down house, it's the only light for miles. He is the last man in Dumbliuneliai, a once busy farmers' village in Lithuania that has gradually been abandoned as its residents emigrated in search of better jobs.

"I'm not going anywhere. This is my land," the 60-year-old says, waving at the abandoned, shuttered houses around him. "When I am gone this village is gone too." As Lithuania prepares to adopt the euro on Jan. 1, it is hoping that membership in the European Union's official currency will bring a rise in investment and trade. But the Baltic country's increasing integration with richer European countries is also having a pernicious side-effect: a wave of emigration that is emptying towns and causing worker shortages.

Emigration has been on the rise since 2004, when this country of 3 million people joined the EU, whose membership guarantees freedom of movement. During the 2008-2011 financial crisis, more than 80,000 people — almost 3 percent of the population — left every year, mainly to Germany, Britain and other richer economies to earn salaries many times higher. Experts forecast that trend to continue, or even increase.

In the field of construction, business owners complain it is impossible to keep hold of workers, even with massive annual wage increases of 10 to 20 percent. The problem is not confined to rural villages. Most shopping malls, restaurants and businesses in once busy urban areas are increasingly short of labor.

"There's simply no more skilled people left here," says Arvydas Avulis, CEO of Hanner, a leading real estate investor and developer that specializes in high-rise construction. A quick look at wage figures shows why. A manual worker in Lithuania can expect to earn 1.80 euros ($2.20) an hour compared with 4.30 euros ($5.24) in Spain and 8.60 euros ($10.50) in Ireland, according to the EU statistics agency.

In the more skilled sectors like computing, medicine or the services industry, where Lithuania's educational system produces highly qualified graduates, wage differences are even greater. Euro membership is expected to help Lithuania's economy, even though the currency bloc is struggling to grow. Having the same currency as 18 other richer economies will facilitate commerce and reduce investment risks for foreigners. The central bank estimates the government's borrowing rate would drop by almost 1 percentage point, which would filter down to the private sector.

The problem is that Lithuania is the bloc's poorest member and even though its economy is growing at a stronger pace than most EU countries, it has a long way to develop before it can hope to offer wages on a par with other EU states.

Unsurprisingly, most Lithuanians are in favor of joining the euro, as it will cement the country's ties with the West and keep those richer labor markets open to them. In a Nov. 26 survey by Berent Research Baltic, 53 percent of respondents said they back euro membership, up from 47 percent in September. Some 39 were opposed, down from 49 percent. A total of 1,002 people were interviewed for the poll, which had a margin of error of 2.5 percentage points.

Skeptics worry about the euro's recent problems with government debt and economic stagnation. Pranciskus Sliuzas, a journalist and anti-euro activist, describes joining the euro as "one of the most stupid things of all time." He laments the fact that Lithuania is giving up some national powers, such as the ability to determine its interest rates or budget deficit.

For others, such economic arguments are of secondary concern to issues like national security — in particular the fear of an increasingly aggressive Russia. Along with neighbors Latvia and Estonia, Lithuania was occupied by the Soviet Union for almost five decades.

"I think it would be a good thing to get closer to the rest of Europe as the only other option is to become friends with (Russian President Vladimir) Putin," said Janina Gailiene, a retired primary school teacher in Vilnius.

For all the potential economic and security benefits, that means business leaders like Avulis will continue to struggle with a shortage of workers as Lithuania's economy integrates further with the West.

One solution businesses are lobbying for is to facilitate immigration from countries that have even lower wages — Ukraine, Belarus and even China. There has been little progress by the government on that front, however.

Sarmite Mikulioniene, sociology professor at Mykolas Romeris University, warns that in time, worker shortages will hurt the economy, threatening the gains made in the first place by joining the EU and euro.

"There will simply be no one left to do simple jobs here in 10 or 15 years," she said.

Lithuania to treat injured Ukrainian troops

Vilnius (AFP)
July 09, 2014

NATO member Lithuania said Wednesday it will provide free medical care for Ukrainian troops injured in clashes with pro-Russian rebels.

A first group of four soldiers will arrive in the Baltic EU state for treatment next week, foreign ministry spokeswoman Rasa Jakilaitiene told AFP.

Formerly Soviet-ruled Lithuania, a nation of three million, is a vocal advocate of stronger EU ties with Ukraine and has viewed Russia's role in the Ukraine crisis with suspicion.

Vilnius already provided free treatment to 22 Ukrainians injured in pro-EU protests that erupted in Kiev late last year, leading to the ouster of its pro-Russian president.

Ukraine on Tuesday rejected talks with pro-Moscow rebels on a truce to halt the bloody insurgency that broke out following the ouster, costing nearly 500 lives and inflaming East-West ties.

Lithuania, the first republic to break free from the Soviet Union in 1990, joined the European Union and NATO in 2004 and now is firmly anchored in the West.

Source: Space War.
Link: http://www.spacewar.com/reports/Lithuania_to_treat_injured_Ukrainian_troops_999.html.