Lithuania may close border with Russia as well as Belarus, interior minister says

Lithuania does not rule out closing its borders with Belarus and Russia, Lithuanian Interior Minister Agne Bilotaite said, as reported by local news outlet LRT on August 17.

Read also: Lithuania, Poland, and Latvia highlight Belarus threat to NATO

"Today we had a meeting with the head of the State Border Guard Service and the entire team discussed not only the closure of the border with Belarus but also other options, such as the closure of the border with the Russian Federation because there may be various threats, and we must be prepared," Bilotaite explained.

She also noted that it was "very difficult to say" whether the border with Russia would be automatically closed after the border with Belarus is closed, adding that "there are no real threats now," but there are "certain risks" of various provocations.

Earlier, Lithuania decided to temporarily close two checkpoints on its border with Belarus. The closure of the Shumskas and Tverecius checkpoints is effective from August 18. The country has also been negotiating with Poland on the possibility of a complete closure of the border with Belarus.

Read also: Another Russian army officer flees to Lithuania, BBC reports

Suwałki Gap and Wagner PMC: What is known

After a failed mutiny attempt in Russia, some mercenaries from Russia’s Wagner mercenary company ended up in Belarus through an agreement with Belarusian dictator Alexander Lukashenko.

Lukashenko subsequently told Russian dictator Vladimir Putin that the Wagner mercenaries were “stressing him out” because of their threats to attack Poland during their July 23 meeting.

He later clarified that he was joking.

Read also: Lukashenko walks back threatening Poland with a Wagner incursion

More than 100 mercenaries from the Wagner mercenary company were reported to have moved towards the Suwalki Gap, Polish Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki announced on July 29.

The Suwalki Gap is a 100-kilometer stretch between Poland and Lithuania that connects the Baltic states with Poland and the rest of NATO – and also separates the Russian exclave Kaliningrad Oblast from Belarus.

Morawiecki referred to such actions as "a dangerous situation" and "a step towards a further hybrid attack on Poland." He suggested that Wagner mercenaries would disguise themselves as Belarusian border guards and help illegal migrants enter Poland. Additionally, he stated that militants could potentially enter Polish territory under the guise of illegal migrants, leading to "additional risks."

Morawiecki met with Lithuanian President Gitanas Nausėda on August 3 after reports surfaced that Wagner PMC mercenaries were approaching the border area in Belarus.

Read also: Poland nabs suspected Russian agent in Wagner recruitment poster saga — video

Earlier, NATO spokesperson Oana Lungescu mentioned that the alliance does not perceive a direct or indirect threat from the Wagner mercenary units based in Belarus.

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