Lithuania has closed its border with Belarus indefinitely after balloons from Belarus violated its airspace for the third straight night. Officials called the repeated incidents a “hybrid attack” amid growing regional tensions.
Lithuania has indefinitely closed its border crossings with Belarus after balloons launched from Belarusian territory violated its airspace for the third consecutive night, officials said on Sunday, News.Az reports, citing foreign media.
The latest incident prompted Vilnius International Airport to suspend operations for several hours overnight on Oct. 26–27 after air traffic controllers detected one or more balloons flying toward the airport. It marked the fourth airspace violation in a week, leading to repeated disruptions of air traffic across Lithuania.
The National Crisis Management Center (NKVC) announced the indefinite border closure early Monday, describing it as a necessary security response to ongoing provocations.
Earlier in the week, Lithuanian officials temporarily shut down border crossings and airports in Vilnius and Kaunas following similar balloon incursions. Prime Minister Inga Ruginienė described the objects as “smuggling balloons” believed to have been launched from Belarus.
President Gitanas Nausėda condemned the repeated incidents, calling them a “hybrid attack” on Lithuania. He urged the government to introduce long-term countermeasures, including border restrictions and limits on transit traffic from Russia’s Kaliningrad exclave.
“The recent incidents and disruptions to airport operations are a hybrid attack on Lithuania, requiring both symmetrical and asymmetrical responses,” the Presidential Office said.
Lithuania has reported several airspace violations this month involving balloons carrying contraband cigarettes. On Oct. 5 and 21, authorities grounded flights over Vilnius due to similar incursions.
The Baltic state shares a 680-kilometer (420-mile) border with Belarus and also borders Russia’s Kaliningrad region. In September, after a Russian drone crossed into Polish airspace, Lithuania’s Interior Minister Vladislav Kondratovic said the country was ready to close its border with Belarus “immediately if provoked.”