{"id":177083,"date":"2026-02-25T12:54:10","date_gmt":"2026-02-25T09:54:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/pozirk.online\/en\/news\/177083\/"},"modified":"2026-03-10T12:05:06","modified_gmt":"2026-03-10T12:05:06","slug":"lithuania-intercepts-drone-with-contraband-cigarettes-near-belarus-border","status":"publish","type":"articles","link":"https:\/\/pozirk.online\/en\/news\/177083\/","title":{"rendered":"Lithuania intercepts drone with contraband cigarettes near Belarus border"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
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\n (vsat.lrv.lt)<\/span>\n <\/div>\n <\/figcaption>\n<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

February 25, Pozirk.<\/em><\/strong> Lithuanian border guards intercepted a drone carrying a shipment of contraband cigarettes in the \u0160al\u010dininkai district near the border with Belarus last night, the Lithuanian State Border Guard Service (VSAT) reports.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Border guards used anti-drone equipment to disable the UAV, which fell and stuck between the branches of a pine tree. To retrieve the device, VSAT officers had to call in specialists equipped with specialized gear.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The drone carried 500 packs of NZ Gold cigarettes with Belarusian excise stamps worth \u20ac2,475.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The border service has reported intercepting six drones with Belarusian cigarettes since the start of 2026. In 2025, Lithuanian border guards downed 59 such UAVs.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Smuggling of cigarettes caused significant tensions between Belarus and Lithuania last year. In late 2025, Vilnius declared an \u201cextreme situation,\u201d a low-level emergency, over incursions of weather balloons that carried contraband goods.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Cigarettes cost an equivalent of around \u20ac1 at stores in Belarus and are significantly cheaper than legally sold cigarettes in Lithuania, where prices start at around \u20ac5. Smuggled NZ cigarettes can be bought at \u20ac2 per pack in Vilnius.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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