Lithuania plans to eliminate contraband-carrying balloons, Prime Minister announces.

Lithuania will begin to intercept and destroy helium balloons carrying contraband tobacco across the border, its prime minister has warned.

This action responds after unauthorized aerial incursions disrupted air traffic repeatedly in recent days, affecting holiday travel, accompanied by temporary closures of Belarus border crossings temporarily each time.

Border checkpoints will now be closed indefinitely due to the ongoing aerial incidents.

According to official declarations, "we are ready to take even the most severe actions against airspace violations."

Official Measures

Outlining the strategy to media, Ruginiene said the army was taking "every required action" to shoot down balloons.

Concerning border measures, the Prime Minister confirmed diplomatic movement continues between the two countries, while European Union nationals and Lithuanian residents retain entry rights, however general movement continues suspended.

"In this way, we are sending a signal to foreign authorities and saying that no hybrid attack will be tolerated within our territory, and we'll implement maximum countermeasures to stop such attacks," government officials declared.

Authorities received no prompt reaction from Minsk officials.

Alliance Coordination

The Baltic nation intends to coordinate with partners over the threat posed from the balloons with possible discussions about implementing the NATO consultation clause - a protocol allowing member state consultation about national security issues, especially related to its security - officials noted.

Airport Disruptions

Lithuanian airports were closed three times over the weekend because of aerial devices from Belarus, disrupting air transport and passenger movement, per transportation authority data.

Earlier this month, multiple aerial devices crossed into Lithuanian airspace, resulting in numerous canceled flights and passenger inconveniences, according to emergency management officials.

These incidents continue previous patterns: by autumn measurements, numerous unauthorized objects tracked entering airspace from neighboring territory during current year, per government spokesperson comments, while 966 were recorded last year.

European Context

Additional aviation facilities - such as Scandinavian and German locations - have also been affected by air incursions, with unauthorized drone observations, during current period.