On Sunday, Lithuanian President Gitanas Nausėda warned that if Belarus is to host Wagner mercenary chief Yevgeny Prigozhin, then NATO must strengthen its eastern flank.
Nausėda spoke following Wagner’s aborted revolt against the Kremlin. After Prigozhin called off the advance, Moscow said the Wagner chief would leave Russia for Belarus and would not face charges.
“If Prigozhin or part of the Wagner Group ends up in Belarus with unclear plans and unclear intentions, it will only mean that we need to further strengthen the security of our eastern borders,” Nausėda was quoted by the AFP news in a RFE/RL report.
Previously, Lithuanian Prime Minister Ingrida Šimonytė said the events in Russia posed “no direct threat” to the country.
“The more the ‘world’s second strongest army’ is worried about a ‘counter-offensive’ in its ranks, the less work is left for Ukraine,” the prime minister said, adding that Lithuania’s borders are being closely monitored.
In February, an adviser to the Lithuanian president said Wagner may test Western defences by attacking the Baltic states.
“Yes, they can test the [West’s] response mechanisms and give the Kremlin a political opportunity to say that it has nothing to do with that. As is happening in Africa,” he said in an interview without presenting any evidence to back up his claim.
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