Lithuania scraps border cooperation deal with Belarus

January 18, BPN. The Lithuanian government has denounced the agreement on fundamental principles for cross-border cooperation with Belarus, the Lithuanian interior ministry’s press office reports.

The neighboring countries signed the deal regulating the movement of vehicles and passengers across the border, the exchange of information and emergency assistance on June 1, 2006.

“Implementation of the bilateral intergovernmental agreement with Belarus is impossible in the current geopolitical situation and will not be possible in the near future,” Interior Minister Agnė Bilotaitė said.

The Lithuanian ministry linked the decision to “the use of [illegal] migration against EU countries by the [Alaksandr] Łukašenka regime and its involvement in the war against Ukraine” after “the 2020 falsified presidential election [in Belarus].” 

In October 2020, Lithuania suspended payments to Belarus and its partners in the framework of a cross-border program. In November 2021, it terminated a cooperation agreement with the Belarusian Ministry of Internal Affairs.