The Belarusian Foreign Ministry promised a pragmatic response to the closure of Lithuanian checkpoints
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Minsk will react to the decision of Vilnius to close two checkpoints on the border with Belarus responsibly and pragmatically. About it says in a statement by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Belarus.
“Belarus will react to this step of Lithuania calmly, responsibly and pragmatically, including in the interests of the residents of neighboring countries. Any changes in the functioning of the visa-free regime due to the increasing load on the remaining checkpoints are not planned at this stage,” the message says.
The Belarusian Foreign Ministry also called on Lithuania to stop artificially creating barriers for citizens and businesses not only in Belarus and Lithuania, but also in the EU as a whole. Minsk considered the decision of the Lithuanian authorities far-fetched and politically motivated. The Foreign Ministry claims that in this way Vilnius wants to prevent citizens of Belarus from visiting under the visa-free regime.
August 16 Lithuanian government approved the proposal of the Ministry of Transport on the temporary suspension of the work of two of the six checkpoints on the border with Belarus. Checkpoints “Shumskas” and “Tvyaryachyus” (“Losha” and “Vidzy” on the Belarusian side, respectively) were closed on the night of August 17-18.
The head of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Lithuania, Agne Bilotaite, explained that such a decision was a response to the deployment of Wagner PMC fighters in Belarus. She allowed complete closure of borders with the republic, if necessary. According to Bilotayte, in this case, only “a humanitarian corridor or a passage for diplomats” can remain.
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