Lithuania has postponed its plans to acquire new military transport aircraft, officials announced Tuesday following a meeting of the State Defence Council.
“The purchase of new military transport aircraft is being postponed,” Deividas Matulionis, the president’s chief adviser on national security, told reporters at the Presidential Palace.
Last June, Lithuania announced plans to buy three new Embraer C-390 transport planes to replace its existing Spartan aircraft.
Defence Minister Robertas Kaunas said the government has decided to modernise the current Spartan fleet to extend its operational life until 2036 at an estimated cost of 150 million euros. Negotiations for new aircraft purchases are now expected to begin around 2030.
Matulionis and Kaunas said that buying the Embraer planes would have required additional funding, but current priorities are better served by investing in military infrastructure, creating a new army division, and developing an integrated air defence system. The estimated cost of the Embraer aircraft was 700–800 million euros.
The decision had faced criticism from opposition lawmakers, who questioned why the Embraer planes were chosen. Lithuania’s Special Investigation Service (STT) has launched a preliminary probe after a request from members of the Seimas National Security and Defence Committee, Giedrimas Jeglinskis and Laurynas Kasčiūnas, to determine whether any corruption occurred in the selection process.
Vilma Vidugirienė, the prosecutor overseeing the inquiry, told 15min.lt on Tuesday that she could not provide details about the investigation, but emphasised that no suspicions have been filed and no one has been given formal status in the case.
Matulionis said the STT investigation did not influence the decision to postpone the purchase of new military transport aircraft.
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