Vytautas Juozapaitis, chairman of the Lithuanian parliamentary Committee on Culture, has proposed banning all Russian and Belarusian state media in Lithuania.
Russian TV channels are currently blocked in the country under a national state of emergency, but the measure is set to expire this month.
Juozapaitis said he had registered amendments to the Law on Public Information on Tuesday, and the amendments would provide for a temporary ban on rebroadcasting and distributing online radio or television programmes produced by organisations that are owned, controlled, or financed by the governments of Russia or Belarus.
Such a ban has been in force ever since Lithuania declared a state of emergency across the country after the Russian invasion of Ukraine last February. However, the restrictions will only apply in the border area from September 16. The Ministry of Culture has said this means that Russian channels without explicit disinformation or war propaganda will be able to be broadcast in the country.
Juozapaitis also said he had initiated the amendments following consultations with specialists from the Ministry of Culture.
In response to Russia’s actions, the European Union has already imposed a number of restrictions, including those on the content of Russian-controlled media outlets, he said.
“For Lithuania, which has an external border with both Russia and Belarus, it is of utmost importance to effectively protect the public and the information space from information threats,” Juozapaitis said in his statement.
The proposed amendments would be in force until October 16, 2024.
The state of emergency across Lithuania was introduced on February 24 following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and remained in force until June 29. It was then extended until September 15. The current legal regime prohibits, among other things, the rebroadcasting of all TV programs directly or indirectly controlled by the governments of Russia and Belarus.
The Lithuanian government has proposed to the parliament to extend the state of emergency until mid-December, but it will only cover areas bordering Russia and Belarus. Moreover, there are plans to restrict the entry of Russians into the country.
The final decision on the extension of the state of emergency is expected to be taken by the parliament on Tuesday.
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