{"id":167931,"date":"2025-12-12T22:27:25","date_gmt":"2025-12-12T19:27:25","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/pozirk.online\/en\/news\/167931\/"},"modified":"2026-03-09T20:10:49","modified_gmt":"2026-03-09T20:10:49","slug":"lithuania-ready-to-send-ambassador-at-large-for-talks-with-minsk","status":"publish","type":"articles","link":"https:\/\/pozirk.online\/en\/news\/167931\/","title":{"rendered":"Lithuania ready to send ambassador at large for talks with Minsk"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

December 12, Pozirk.<\/em><\/strong> Lithuania can send an ambassador at large to take part in talks with Belarus, the country\u2019s Foreign Minister K\u0119stutis Budrys said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

He told LRT<\/em> that Lithuania had repeatedly proposed it to Minsk.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

He added that he doubts that negotiations with Belarus make sense, noting that more serious talks require approval at \u201cthe national level.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Earlier this week, Lithuania declared an \u201cextreme situation\u201d at least for a month to see if it can cope with weather balloons. Interior Minister Vladislav Kondratovi\u010d is in charge of the response operation.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Tensions between Belarus and Lithuania over cigarette-smuggling balloons have been rising since mid-October, prompting Lithuanian authorities to close the border and suspend operations at Vilnius International Airport, which is located close to the Belarusian border.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Last week, Kondratovi\u010d said nearly 600 weather balloons and 197 drones had been spotted in Lithuania since January. The incidents disrupted 350 flights, affecting about 51,000 passengers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Vilnius International Airport has suspended operations for more than 60 hours since October, most recently on December 6.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Vilnius kept the Medininkai\u2013Kamienny \u0141oh and \u0160al\u010dininkai\u2013Bieniakoni checkpoints at the shared border with Belarus closed from October 29 to November 20 over the incursions. Nearly 200 Lithuanian trucks remain stranded on Belarusian territory since then.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Minsk barred these cargo vehicles from leaving the country and ordered them to move to guarded parking sites. Lithuania, in turn, accused Belarus of escalation by seizing the vehicles and preventing their return.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Vilnius has ignored Minsk\u2019s appeals for direct diplomatic talks because it significantly downgraded official contacts after what it called rigged 2020 presidential election in Belarus.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Minsk pushes for consultations between the countries\u2019 foreign ministries, while Lithuania views possible talks as an effort to break the international isolation of \u0141uka\u0161enka\u2019s regime and potentially pave the way for easing sanctions.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Speaking at a government conference on December 9, Alaksandar \u0141uka\u0161enka also outlined what Minsk would like to discuss at potential talks with Vilnius.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cGive us back the 17 or 20 trucks that you stole. The fire trucks that we shipped to Zimbabwe. Normalize operations of our health resort, where we treated Chernobyl children. They actually took the health resort away from children. And give us back the money we spent on building a port [in Lithuania],\u201d he was quoted by state media.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u0141uka\u0161enka was likely referring to the Belorus health resort in Druskininkai and Belarusian potash giant Bie\u0142aruskalij\u2019s 30-percent stake in Biri\u0173 Krovini\u0173 Terminalas (BKT), a Klaipeda dry cargo terminal.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Vilnius suspended Belarusian fertilizer transshipments through the port of Klaipeda on February 1, 2022, punishing Minsk for human rights abuses. Bie\u0142aru\u015bkalij has been under the EU sanctions since 2021.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In August 2022, the Belarusian strongman accused Lithuania of expropriating Bie\u0142aruskalij\u2019s properties. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

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