In his talk with the First News Channel, Foreign Minister Maxim Ryzhenkov commented on Lithuania’s closure of checkpoints on the border with Belarus
“These are some kind of provocations,” Belarus’ FM said, commenting on the actions of the Lithuanian side. “If someone needs to find a reason to justify some actions with their rhetoric (against Belarus, against Russia, and eventually against their citizens), then such reasons are sought. As regards some balloons with contraband cigarettes, they used to regularly fly over in the past. There are definitely such smugglers. Interestingly, our side has received no notes. They still cannot figure out what balloons were flying over there, they have not found anyone [responsible].”
Mr. Ryzhenkov drew attention to another point: Vilnius can accuse Belarus as much as it likes, but someone is also on the other side. “If these are really balloons, smugglers, then who is on the other side? [These are] Lithuanians who, strictly speaking, use this for profit. There are organised gangs engaged into this business there, so deal with them. Once you settle this issue and defeat smuggling in your country, then there will be no such questions. All this looks like some kind of provocation aimed at justifying certain anti-Belarusian, anti-Russian approaches, which may be followed by the termination of transit to the Kaliningrad Region and further restrictions on the flight of aircraft over the territory. This may be presented by saying that ‘there are barbarians around us who are doing something incomprehensible’. That’s what everything is being done for,” he stressed.
As the Foreign Minister noted, it is difficult for the Lithuanian authorities to justify anti-Belarusian, anti-Russian actions to their people. Therefore, they are trying to ‘scrape together some kind of negativity’, against which a Lithuanian who is deeply worried about the escalation of the situation will support the actions of the authorities because of the ‘threat from the East’.
Mr. Ryzhenkov also voiced the position of President of Belarus Aleksandr Lukashenko. According to him, during today’s meeting with Cardinal Claudio Gugerotti, Prefect of the Vatican’s Dicastery for the Eastern Churches, the Head of State called it utter stupidity ‘to think that Belarus or Russia are going to march on Paris, London or somewhere else’.