Belarusians living in Lithuania call Alexander Lukashenko's secret inauguration on Wednesday a farce and continue to demand the authoritarian leader's resignation.
Alexander Lukashenko
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Lithuanian President Gitanas Nauseda has called Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko's recent threats to close the border "a provocation", and also warned of a "mirror" response, if such a decision is made.
Traffic across Lithuania's border with Belarus continues as normal, the commander of the Lithuanian State Border Guard Service said on Friday morning.
Lithuanian President Gitanas Nauseda is calling on the European Union to impose sanctions against Alexander Lukashenko and is planning to initiate European discussions on economic support to Belarus after the authoritarian regime falls.
The Lithuanian parliament adopted on Thursday a resolution calling on the international community to respond to the events in Belarus and prevent Russia from deciding the political course of the country.
EU member states' different positions on Belarus undermine the country's chances of becoming democratic and do not contribute to regional stability, Ramunas Karbauskis, leader of the ruling Lithuanian Farmers and Greens Union, said in a Facebook post.
The majority of Lithuanian political experts believe the ongoing protests in Belarus will gradually die down or will be suppressed and Alexander Lukashenko will stay in power, according to the results of a survey presented by the Easter Europe Studies Center on Friday.
A dead-end is still seen in Belarus and the regime is trying to win time and slow democratic processes, Lithuanian Foreign Minister Linas Linkevicius says.
Pavel Latushko, a member of the Belarusian opposition's Coordination Council, is visiting Vilnius on Friday.
As authoritarian Belarusian leader Alexander Lukashenko continues to threaten to divert Belarusian cargoes from the Lithuanian port of Klaipeda to Russia, Luminor bank's chief economist Zygimantas Mauricas says the port needs to cut its reliance on the East-to-West flow.
Statements by Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia "matter less and less" to Belarus, the Belarusian Foreign Ministry's spokesman said on Monday after the three Baltic states imposed entry bans on President Alexander Lukashenko and 29 other high-ranking officials.
Lithuanian Interior Minister Rita Tamasuniene signed on Monday a decree to blacklist President Alexander Lukashenko and 29 other Belarusian officials for their roles in vote-rigging and violence against protesters.
Two Belarusian sound engineers have fled to Lithuania in fear of repression by the authorities for playing Viktor Tsoi's Peremen (Change), the Soviet perestroika-era song adopted as an anthem by Belarusian protesters, at a pro-government event in Minsk.
Lithuania's Ministry of Foreign Affairs is proposing sanctions for over 100 Belarusian officials responsible for vote-rigging and violence against peaceful protesters.
Protesters demanding a free election in Belarus are no longer the opposition, they are the majority, Svetlana Tikhanovskaya, the former Belarusian opposition presidential candidates, says, adding that there's an ongoing peaceful democratic revolution in Belarus.
The world can no longer play the double game with Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko's regime and it needs to be politically and diplomatically isolated, ex-Lithuanian President Dalia Grybauskaite says.
The Lithuanian seaport of Klaipeda is the most cost-effective and efficient route for Belarusian exports, Prime Minister Saulius Skvernelis said amid reports that some port operators might be affected by strikes in the neighboring country.
Belarusians demand a new presidential election and the authorities must hear their voice, Svetlana Tikhanovskaya, the opposition challenger in Belarus' disputed presidential election, said in Vilnius on Friday, adding that other states cannot interfere in her country's affairs.
The positions of neighboring countries, including Lithuania, should be taken into account during the upcoming remote European Council meeting on Belarus on Wednesday, ex-Lithuanian Ambassador to the EU Jovita Neliupsiene says.
The Lithuanian parliament adopted on Tuesday a resolution calling for the non-recognition of Belarus' recent presidential election and sanctions against officials in the neighboring country.
