The template for the front cover of the document portrays an image of Pahonia that resembles Vytis, a mounted armoured knight holding a sword and shield.
"The Lithuanian Government is not taking part in the implementation of Belarusian democratic forces’ initiative on new passports," the ministry said in a comment sent to ELTA on Thursday.
"The Vytis coat of arms of the state of Lithuania is not used on the passport of democratic Belarus," it stated.
Propaganda narratives spread by the Lukashenko regime have been observed for some time now in Lithuania, aiming at sowing discord between the democratic forces of Lithuanians and Belarusians, according to the Foreign Ministry.
"One of the key propaganda lines is an attempt to divide Lithuanian and Belarusian democratic forces on the issue of state symbols. As with the other issue of Litvinism, we see the Lukashenko regime’s purposeful activity here," the ministry said, adding that the intensity is related to Lukashenko’s upcoming self-appointment as the leader of Belarus due in end-January.
On Wednesday, Belarusian opposition leader Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya announced plans to present the new Belarusian passport on 26 January during a visit to Warsaw.
"There has been a lot of interest from foreign politicians, we have already spoken to several ministers, and now additional legal justification needs to be prepared. The Passport Centre has already sent samples to all European countries," she wrote on Facebook yesterday.