„Yesterday I approached the minister of national defence regarding enhanced border security and the extension of the deployment of soldiers,“ Katelynas told journalists ahead of Wednesday’s Cabinet meeting.
The minister hopes to extend this period until the beginning of November.
„I believe a decision will be taken in the near future, as it had been agreed that the army would be deployed until 16 October. I hope this period will be extended until the beginning of November,“ he said.
According to Katelynas, for the time being, the plan is to continue deploying the same number of soldiers – up to 100 – for border protection.
„For now, the same number as there is at present. The number of soldiers to be deployed is certainly not set in stone. The State Border Guard Service assesses on the ground where the needs lie, how many soldiers are required at any given time, and communicates this to the Ministry of National Defence and the army command. I believe they will certainly agree on whether 60, 80 or 100 soldiers are needed. It is certainly not the job of politicians to agree on what capabilities are required,“ said a spokesperson for the Ministry of the Interior (VRM).
As reported by ELTA, last week the Minister for the Interior, Katelynas, announced the decision to deploy the army to strengthen Lithuania’s border security near the Kaliningrad region.
According to him, these measures were taken in light of an incident in which a group of migrants, accompanied by armed individuals, attempted to cross the border between Latvia and Belarus illegally. Preventative measures have also been taken following an assessment of the overall security situation in the region and indications that Russia may announce a mobilisation.
Troops are planned to be deployed at the border near Kaliningrad for a couple of weeks, but the duration and scale of the deployment may be adjusted in light of the evolving situation.