He suggested that a recent meeting between US Ambassador John Coale and Belarusian leader Alexander Lukashenko may have contributed to the change.
“At this point, we cannot say with 100% certainty that this is a sustainable process and that there will be no more balloons at the airport – we need to wait and see. But the situation has improved significantly,” Matulionis told Žinių radijas on Tuesday.
“For 45 days we have had no problems – in other words, there was no need to close airports. The wind was variable, sometimes favourable, sometimes unfavourable,” he said.
“I would say there are several reasons for this: our law enforcement agencies have done a lot to combat the organisers of this balloon smuggling, climatic conditions may also have had an impact, and I would not rule out that the demand by US envoy John Coale for Lukashenko to stop this hybrid action is having an effect,” he added.
The Government declared a nationwide state of emergency on 9 December 2025, after dozens of smuggling balloons crossed the border from Belarus in recent months, repeatedly disrupting air traffic. Officials said the weather balloons, used to carry cigarettes, pose a threat to Lithuania’s national security.
Interior Minister Vladislav Kondratovič said last week there were no plans to lift the emergency in the near future. The measure allows closer coordination between agencies and the deployment of military units to assist police and strengthen investigations into airborne smuggling.