LRT English Newsletter – September 12, 2025.
Lithuania was on high alert Wednesday after 19 Russian drones strayed into Polish airspace during Moscow’s latest aerial assault on Ukraine. Vilnius monitored its skies and prepped its air raid warning system – sirens ready to wail if any drone crossed into Lithuanian territory.
The incident comes just as Lithuania tightens border security ahead of the Russian-Belarusian Zapad military drills, which kick off Friday. Poland, meanwhile, triggered NATO’s Article 4, demanding consultations among allies over the threat.
Visiting Vilnius, Gen. Alexus Grynkewich, NATO’s Supreme Allied Commander Europe, said a large swarm of drones would count as an attack on allied territory. But Lithuania wants more: after talks with Grynkewich, Defence Minister Dovilė Šakalienė said it’s time to upgrade NATO’s air policing mission in the Baltics to rotational air defence – reflecting growing fears that deterrence alone won’t be enough.
UNDECISIVE MILITARY PRESENCE
Just days after the US Ambassador to NATO Matthew G. Whitaker reassured us that NATO and the US are committed to the defence of the Baltic states, the Washington Post reported that the United States plans to end military assistance to European countries near Russia, including funding for a programme that provides money to the Baltic states (to buy American weapons, among other things).
Since the final decision on this matter will have to be made by the US Congress, Lithuania’s Defence Minister Dovilė Šakalienė says she expects Seimas members to help convince US lawmakers not to reduce Washington’s military support for NATO’s eastern member states. Their efforts are supported by US Senator Dick Durbin, one of the strongest advocates of US-Baltic cooperation.
Furthermore, meeting Polish President Karol Nawrocki in the Oval Office last week, Trump told his counterpart that he was actually willing to send more troops to Poland, a news welcomed by both Polish and Lithuanian leaders. Nawrocki, visiting Vilnius on his trip back from the US, said he raised Baltic security concerns at the White House.
For his part, Lithuanian President Gitanas Nausėda said that Trump’s preparedness to send troops to Poland “also means that we can expect the United States to pay attention to the entire region”.
NEW PROGRAM, NEW CABINET
Prime Minister-designate Inga Ruginienė on Wednesday unveiled her incoming government’s program, promising stability and continuity with the outgoing 19th Cabinet.
The new coalition is going big on military spending – pledging to boost outlays to 5% of GDP, which would make Lithuania one of NATO’s top spenders proportionally. The program is also eyeing a diplomatic thaw with Beijing, and pledges not to introduce any new taxes, except for possible levies on banks – an intention President Nausėda has already panned.
But the new coalition’s ‘financial stability tax’ is not the only thing the President has taken issue with – Nausėda signed off on the Cabinet list conspicuously leaving the environment and energy ministries vacant. Both portfolios belong to junior coalition partner Nemunas Dawn, whose members Nausėda refuses to appoint. The president said the nominations came in too late for proper vetting, and flagged that one nominee still lacked a security clearance.
Also on Wednesday, the Lithuanian parliament elected Social Democrat Juozas Olekas, a veteran lawmaker and former defence and health minister, as speaker of the Seimas, replacing Saulius Skvernelis, the leader of the Democrats “For Lithuania” party.
MIGRATION
Lithuanian authorities on Wednesday expelled a Cameroonian national who had lived in the country for nearly four years and started a family. Human rights groups blasted the move, saying it violated the European Convention on Human Rights, which guarantees the right to family life.
Don’t expect this to be the last case. President Gitanas Nausėda’s top national security adviser, Deividas Matulionis, is pushing for a tougher migration line. Interior Minister Vladislav Kondratovič added that officials will step up cooperation with universities to weed out fraudulent foreign student enrollments – a new flashpoint in Lithuania’s migration debate.
TANKER FIRE
Lithuanian officials are warning of a surge in disinformation and conspiracy theories after a major fire ripped through a liquefied gas terminal outside Vilnius.
Eight tank cars and one stationary reservoir ignited Wednesday morning, injuring one worker who was taken to hospital.
The government’s National Crisis Management Centre (NKVC) stressed the blaze was accidental, no foreign interference suspected, but accused hostile outlets of weaponizing the incident to stoke fear and undermine trust in state institutions.
FIRST SAME-SEX MARRIAGE IN VILNIUS
Vilnius celebrated a historic milestone this week as Eglė and Karolina exchanged rings a month after a court formally recognised their partnership – the first time Lithuania has officially acknowledged a same-sex couple. Friends, family and supporters gathered to witness what many described as a turning point for equality in Lithuania.
POLITICAL PRISONERS RELEASED
Belarus released 52 political prisoners Thursday, among them opposition figures, journalists, and foreign nationals from across Europe, Lithuanian President Gitanas Nausėda announced at an emergency press conference.
The list included Lithuanian citizen Elena Ramanauskienė, a former marketing head at the Belarus-owned Belorus sanatorium, who had been accused of passing on information about guests. Her son had personally appealed to Nausėda for help.
Nausėda stressed the move was not linked to sanctions relief, but even as he spoke, reports surfaced that Washington would lift restrictions on Belavia, Belarus’s national airline – following a meeting between Alexander Lukashenko and White House envoy John Cole.
EDITOR’S PICKS:
– Worried about the drones? Check Lithuania’s bomb shelter network.
– Ever thought of cold beet soup in space? Well, this Lithuanian company is making it a reality.
– What’s it like to be an international student in Vilnius?
– Grades up, bullying down, phones away.
– Can you guess where is the most remote Lithuanian museum?
– What ties Louis Armstrong and Lithuania?
– Ukrainians want political change. But whom will they trust?
– What’s happening with OSCE Minsk?
Would you like to contribute to LRT English? Please send your suggestions, submissions, and pitches to english@lrt.lt
Written by Austė Sargytė
Edited by Justinas Šuliokas
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