The Lithuanian government is taking defence very seriously and some concerns coming from the opposition are unfounded, Prime Minister Gintautas Paluckas says as conservative politicians are putting forward proposals for strengthening the country’s defence.
“I cannot explain why the conservatives have only been out of power for three months and think that everything has fallen apart. We are taking defence issues very seriously, and defence funding already stands at 4 percent of GDP in the 2025 budget, and will reach the State Defence Council’s targets in 2026-2028,” the Social Democrat prime minister told reporters on Wednesday.
“All sorts of fears that we are not taking care of counter-mobility measures are unfounded as we will announce plans next week to allocate over 50 million euros for the purchase of anti-tank mines, which is an order for our domestic industry,” he said.
Defence is being addressed “without wasting time, with the necessary financial resources and changes in the legal framework”, the prime minister underlined.
His comment came after the conservative Homeland Union (TS-LKD) on Wednesday presented the party’s proposals to strengthen national security and defence. They are calling for the production and stockpiling of ammunition, mines and drones domestically, as well as for the completion of counter-mobility engineering parks by 2026.
In mid-January, the State Defence Council decided that Lithuania should spend between 5 and 6 percent of its GDP, or around 12 billion euros, on defence over the next five years.
Lithuania aims to raise additional funds to establish a national division within its armed forces by 2030, to get ready to host the planned German brigade. Some of the money is expected to come from economic growth, borrowing and tax adjustments.
Newsletter
Every Friday morning.
