Despite concerns raised about national security, the Lithuanian Seimas parliament has rejected proposals to impose travel restrictions on Russian and Belarusian citizens.
Four conservative MPs proposed amendments restricting travel for Russian and Belarusian permit holders. The amendments were rejected, with 47 MPs against them and 20 in favour, with 45 abstaining.
Another proposal to limit trips to Russia or Belarus once every three months also failed to gain sufficient support. This vote resulted in 37 MPs against, 41 in favour and 39 abstentions, SchengenVisaInfo reports.
One of the MPs behind the rejected amendments, Audronius Ažubalis, emphasized that such measures can help mitigate the risk of recruitment of citizens by foreign intelligence agencies.
He noted that frequent travel between Lithuania and the two countries could be a security vulnerability.
According to him, the parliament’s decision reflects a commitment to preserve the current freedoms of travel, even though it faces the challenges of protecting interests and national security.
An MP from the Freedom Party, Kasparas Adomaitis, also voiced strong criticism against the rejected travel restriction proposals, calling them insufficient and barely targeted. Adomaitis questioned the reasoning behind singling out Belarusians for travel bans to their homeland, while Lithuanians face no such restrictions.
We have voted to allow Belarusians who have a residence permit in Lithuania to see their relatives or occasionally go to Belarus. We did not take the decision to declare all Belarusians a threat.
As Audronius Ažubalis explains, temporary residence permit holders made many border crossings between Lithuania and Belarus or Russia in recent months.
Lithuania Recordeds 28,000 Border Crossings with Belarus & Russia in December 2023
In this regard, he revealed that in December 2023 alone, these permit holders crossed the Lithuanian-Belarusian or Russian border a total of 28,000 times. The numbers for the year’s first quarter continued to rise significantly, reaching a total of 422,000 crossings from January to March.
Lithuania Considers Limiting Belarusian Travel Due to Security Concerns
Lithuanian Members of Parliament have recently proposed imposing restrictions on the frequency of travel for Belarusians returning to their home country.
According to intelligence officers from the State Security Department (VSD), Belarusians holding a Lithuanian residence permit should only be allowed to return to Belarus once a year. This recommendation comes amid concerns about potential security risks associated with frequent travel between Lithuania and Belarus.
In addition to the proposed yearly limit on trips home, VSD intelligence officers have suggested stricter consequences for those who do not comply with this rule. They propose that individuals failing to adhere to the once-a-year limit should revoke their residence permits, effectively barring them from staying in Lithuania.
