Lithuania considers limiting passenger services with Belarus over security concerns

July 26, BPN. The Lithuanian transport ministry has asked the state security services to assess risks associated bus services between Lithuania and Belarus, tv3.lt reported.

Lithuania may limit or suspend passenger services if the risk of maintaining links to a country that it considers Russia’s ally and a co-aggressor in the war on Ukraine is too high.

Lithuanian carriers’ operations should be evaluated in the context of possible threats to national security, said Mindaugas Tarnauskas, a deputy transport minister. He cited official recommendations that Lithuanians should avoid travelling to Belarus amid intensified recruitment attempts by Belarusian security services.

Lithuanian carriers “do not see any risks,” said Gintaras Nakutis of the Lithuanian Passenger Transport Association.

“I do not know how many Lithuanian nationals are traveling, but. . . a lot of Belarusians are traveling by bus as they have no other options to return from Europe,” he said.

Currently, 11 Lithuanian and 22 Belarusian companies are operating a total of 66 Belarus-bound passenger bus routes.