Economy
Record turnover at Klaipėda port
Klaipėda Seaport handled nearly 38.5 million tons of cargo last year, 1.85 million tons more than the highest level ever recorded for a year. […]
Year: 2016
Politics
Politicians have ‘written off countryside’ and ‘worship free market’, says ex-presidential adviser
Social ills plaguing Lithuania’s regions – alcoholism, suicide, domestic violence, abuse of children and massive emigration – are as a result of “free market worship” and the government’s failure to address widening inequalities between the country’s thriving economic centres and periphery, said former adviser to the Lithuanian president Virginija Būdienė. […]
Society
Will Lithuania ever be a nation of 3.5 million again?
Will Lithuania ever again be a nation of 3.5 million? This target, championed by the leaders of six political parties, is to be achieved by 2025. Some experts say it reeks of utopianism, while others point to historic precedents in other countries. […]
Politics
Lithuania moves forward with airline passenger registration
The Lithuanian government has endorsed a proposal to have airlines share information about all passengers arriving and leaving Lithuania with law enforcement institutions. The law, drafted by the Ministry of the Interior, is part of the country’s anti-terrorism effort. […]
Sports
Berankis off to a good start in 2016
Ričardas Berankis, Lithuania’s best tennis player and number 85 in the world, kicked off the 2016 season with a victory. The 25-year-old player is participating in the ATP 250 tournament in Doha, Qatar, where he beat sixth-seeded Italian Andreas Seppi (31, ATP 29) in the first round. […]
Society
Ban on unvaccinated children in kindergarten to be investigated by courts
At the beginning of 2016, an order came into effect at the Ministry of Health that bars children that have not been vaccinated from polio, measles or rubella from being enrolled in kindergarten. Now, the Lithuanian courts will investigate whether this order, issued by former Minister of Health Vytenis Andriukaitis, was legal. […]
Energy
Call for boycott of Belarus and Kaliningrad power plants by Lithuanian energy minister
In a letter addressed directly to ministers in Latvia, Estonia, Poland and Finland, Lithuanian Minister of Energy Rokas Masiulis exhorted these countries to carefully consider whether or not they should purchase electricity from the nuclear power plants being constructed in Belarus and in Russia’s Kaliningrad enclave. […]
Economy
Lithuania to redraw regional divisions to maximize EU support
The Lithuanian government has endorsed a proposal to redraw the country’s regional divisions in order to keep some of the European Union support after 2021. […]
Foreign affairs
North Korea ‘irresponsible and provocative’, Minister Linkevičius says
North Korea, which claims to have tested a hydrogen bomb, is acting irresponsibly and has violated several UN resolutions on nuclear weapons, says Lithuania’s Foreign Minister Linas Linkevičius. He is sceptical, however, the the UN Security Council will adopt any resolute measures during its extraordinary meeting. […]
Economy
Energy
For Lithuanian gas exports to Latvia, ball is in Latvian court
If Latvia’s gas provider, Latvijas Gaze, will agree to draft rules and conditions for Lithuania’s gas providers, then Lithuanian gas exports may begin as early as this year. The Latvian high court’s decision to allow such a transfer removed one hurdle to the effort, but others remain. […]
Foreign affairs
Lithuanian president will not run for UN Secretary General
The Lithuanian President Dalia Grybauskaitė will not run for UN Secretary General despite being named by several international NGOs as a possible candidate to run for the post which will be decided the United Nations General Assembly this year. […]
Economy
Society
Psychiatric examination ordered in double homicide as forensic experts present findings
A psychiatric examination of the suspect in the investigation of a tragic double homicide in Kėdainiai district has been ordered as forensic experts presented their findings. A father is suspected of having thrown his two kids into a well. […]
Defence
NATO jets scrambled 160 times to protect Lithuanian airspace in 2015
Lithuania’s Defence Ministry said that NATO jets patrolling airspace over the Baltic Countries scrambled 160 times to intercept Russian planes in 2015, up 14% on the previous year. […]
Economy
Lithuanian tourists stranded in Georgia after cancelled flight
Some 150 Lithuanian tourists got stuck in an airport in the Georgian city of Kutaisi after an airline cancelled its flight on Monday due to adverse weather conditions. […]
Politics
Parliament should approve non-Lithuanian names on passports now, says PM
The Lithuanian parliament should adopt a new law, allowing Lithuanian nationals to spell their names using non-Lithuanian characters in ID documents such as passports, in its spring plenary, Prime Minister Algirdas Butkevičius said. […]
Politics
President signs citizenship amendments into law
Lithuanian President Dalia Grybauskaitė has signed amendments to the Law on Citizenship, allowing people with “great merit” to the Lithuanian state to keep dual citizenship. […]
Politics
Reform of tax system ‘should be key platform for Social Democrats’ in election
Lithuania’s Social Democratic Party needs to run on a truly social democratic platform, centred around a reformed and fairer tax system and social services in this year’s elections ,according to European Commissioner Vytenis Andriukaitis. […]
Uncategorized
Future of Russia sanctions depends on Minsk agreements – Linkevičius
The future of international sanctions against Russia depends primarily on whether Moscow will implement the Minsk agreements on the settlement of the military conflict in Ukraine, said Lithuanian Foreign Minister Linas Linkevičius on Tuesday at his annual press conference. […]