Lithuania has sharply reduced the number of buses travelling between the capital Vilnius and Belarus, which followed restrictions imposed last year as part of the state of emergency declared on the country’s border.
The limits formally took effect on March 1, 2024, but the number of buses travelling between the two countries exceeded the allowed quota of 29 trips – there were up to 58 journeys, running in both directions, the authorities said.
“We contacted the operators, reminded them of the rules, and they began adjusting their schedules,” Egle Kučinskaitė, spokesperson of Lithuanian Transport Safety Administration (LTSA), told LRT.lt.
After the warning, the number of services dropped to the permitted level, she said.
Lithuanian politicians previously called on authorities to limit the number of bus services operating across the border, saying the high volume of people travelling to and from Belarus gave secret services of the neighbouring country a better chance to coerce people to work for them.
“Recently, hostile and provocative actions by Belarusian authorities against Lithuanian citizens, whether residing [there] or visiting temporarily, have intensified. Lithuanian citizens are being unlawfully detained and presented with fabricated charges,” the Foreign Ministry said on its website.
The ministry advises Lithuanians not to travel to Belarus, and those currently there to leave immediately
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