Lithuania has submitted evidence to the International Civil Aviation Organization over repeated airspace violations caused by smuggling balloons launched from Belarus, Prime Minister Inga Ruginienė said Wednesday.
“Lithuania has officially approached the International Civil Aviation Organization, submitting collected evidence of airspace violations originating from the territory of Belarus,” Ruginienė told a news conference.
“These are not isolated incidents; we are talking about repeated actions that affect our civil aviation and pose a risk to international aviation safety,” she said.
Lithuania expects a “clear international assessment and a principled response” from ICAO, she added.
Transport Minister Juras Taminskas said there were indications ICAO could classify the incidents as a hybrid attack by Belarus.
“This would be a serious political blow to the regime, which is trying to return to the international arena, because Minsk is keen to avoid ICAO recognising that it is violating international civil aviation law,” Taminskas told reporters.
He said ICAO’s designation could also strengthen the case for future sanctions against Belarus.
Taminskas first appealed to ICAO in October, but the agency said concrete evidence was needed to formally examine the incidents. On Wednesday, the minister said ICAO’s assessment process typically takes about a year, as the organisation must request explanations from Belarus under established legal procedures.
Ruginienė said that since last autumn, Lithuanian authorities have checked about 50,000 people and 38,000 vehicles, intercepted around 100 balloons and seized 234,000 packs of cigarettes.
According to Transport Ministry data, Lithuania’s airspace has been violated at least 16 times since October, affecting more than 370 flights and about 53,000 passengers. Total losses are estimated at more than 2.3 million euros.
In mid-December, the government declared an emergency situation over the smuggling balloons, which have repeatedly disrupted operations at Vilnius Airport and posed a threat to civil aviation. In October, Lithuania temporarily closed its border with Belarus over the same issue.
Incidents involving balloons have declined since mid-December following a visit to Belarus by Donald Trump’s envoy, John Coale. After the visit, Coale said Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko had promised to halt the launches.
Lithuanian officials have described the balloon incursions as a hybrid attack by the Belarusian government.
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