Politics
Year: 2015
Society
Vilnius Sports Palace, built on Jewish cemetery, to host conferences, not concerts, PM says
Built within the territory of a former Jewish cemetery, the Vilnius Palace of Concerts and Sports will host conferences after its reconstruction, and not concerts, Lithuanian Prime Minister Algirdas Butkevičius said on Wednesday. […]
Politics
Lithuania needs new refugee integration model, president says
Lithuania needs to create a new refugee integration model, the country’s President Dalia Grybauskaitė said on Wednesday. […]
Politics
Defence
Lithuanian soldiers train troops of National Guard of Ukraine
Soldiers with the Grand Duchess Birutė Uhlan Battalion and US troops further train members of the Ukrainian National Guard. On September 14 soldiers of Birutė Battalion replaced troops of the Lithuanian Grand Duke Kęstutis Mechanised Infantry Battalion who had been raining the Ukrainian National Guard since July. […]
Politics
Lithuanian interior minister: State borders need guarding, but not with barbed wires
The protection of state borders must be stepped up in the wake of the ongoing influx of illegal immigrants, Lithuanian Interior Minister Saulius Skvernelis says. […]
Defence
Lithuanian president: AFV purchase to be discussed by State Defence Council
The acquisition of armoured fighting vehicles will be discussed by the State Defence Council, the Lithuanian presidential office confirmed to BNS on Wednesday. […]
Society
Politics
Security Department to screen every refugee to be resettled in Lithuania
The State Security Department will scrutinize every refugee to be resettled in Lithuania to make sure that persons linked with terrorism do not enter the country, says the department’s director Darius Jauniškis. […]
Politics
Lithuanian Welfare Ministry requests EUR 5.5m in 2016 for refugee resettlement
Lithuania’s Ministry of Welfare and Labour has requested 5.5 million euros in the next year’s budget for resettlement of refugees. The preliminary plan is that the first 95 refugees should arrive in Lithuania in January 2016. […]
Defence
NATO fighter jets scrambled from Lithuania over two Russian planes
Hungary’s JAS-39 Gripen fighter-jets serving in the NATO Baltic air policing mission were scrambled from the Lithuanian Aviation Base in Šiauliai on Tuesday to identify and accompany two Russian war planes. […]
Uncategorized
Second day discussing democracy in Vilnius: Putin is very European, the Sicilian variety
During its second day, the Vilnius Democracy Forum moved into high gear with two panel discussions that saw expert insight into various threats to democracy. As autocratic regimes figure high on the list of threats to democracy, Putin’s Russia, China and even North Korea were never far from the discussion. […]
Society
Vilnius University advances in QS World University Rankings
In the latest world university ranking 2015/2016, published by QS World University Rankings, Vilnius University (VU) improved its position to 501-550 from the 551-600 position previously, the university reports. […]
Foreign affairs
Lithuania reaches final stage of OECD accession
Lithuania has reached the final stage in the process of accession to the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD). […]
Defence
Seimas speaker wants Public Procurement Office to inspect AFV purchase tender
After former chief of the Lithuanian Armed Forces Valdas Tutkus expressed his doubts about the transparency of the armoured fighting vehicle (AFV) purchase tender, Seimas Speaker Loreta Graužinienė says that he should have involved relevant institutions. The politician has also asked the Public Procurement Office (VPT) to evaluate the tender. The VPT says, however, that it will not look into the purchase as it falls under an exception envisaged for military contracts. […]
Defence
Kaunas to host military exercise
A military exercise will be held in and near Lithuania’s second-largest city Kaunas, with armoured vehicles driving on the city streets, the Ministry of National Defence said. […]
Economy
Lithuania elected to vice-chair World Tourism Organization’s Commission for Europe
During the 59th meeting of the World Tourism Organization (UNWTO) Commission for Europe, held last Sunday in Medellin, Colombia, Lithuania along with Switzerland and Montenegro were elected to chair the regional commission. […]
Politics
Lithuanian government behind in preparations for refugee resettlement, parliament speaker says
Lithuania’s Parliamentary Speaker Loreta Graužinienė says that the government is not moving fast enough in its preparations to receive refugees. […]
Society
Lithuania considers scrapping paper birth, death and marriage certificates
Hard copies of birth, death and marriage certificates would be issued only upon request, and people would not be obliged to inform about their changed status, according to a package of amendments proposed to the Seimas of Lithuania. […]
Politics
PM says he’s unsure how many refugees Lithuania will have to accept
Prime Minister Algirdas Butkevičius is unsure how many refugees Lithuania will have to accept because the number will vary depending on how many people the European Union (EU) decides to relocate. […]