Politics
Lithuanian parliament must have a say on refugee numbers, Seimas speaker says
The Seimas of Lithuania must decide on the number of refugees Lithuania could accept, its Speaker Loreta Graužinienė believes. […]
refugees
Society
Catholic Church plans to accept more Iraqis in Lithuania
The Catholic Church of Lithuania plans to accept more Iraqi Christians who are being persecuted in their homeland, Vilnius Metropolitan Archbishop Gintaras Grušas, head of the Lithuanian Archbishops’ Conference, says. […]
Opinion
Opinion: Refugees are bigger problem than Russian invasion
On 14 September, Europe’s justice and interior affairs ministers will convene in Brussels to agree on tangible measures to solve the intensifying refugee crisis. Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico said that Central European premiers – of the Czech Republic, Poland, Slovakia and Hungary – would have a separate meeting to discuss the crisis. […]
Politics
Lithuanian foreign minister: We will contribute to tackling refugee crisis but still don’t believe in quotas
Lithuania will show solidarity and will contribute to solving the refugee crisis, but it does not support quotas, Foreign Minister Linas Linkevičius said on Saturday, adding that the causes of the crisis must be addressed, rather than just dealing with the consequences. […]
Politics
PM: Lithuania will probably have to take in more refugees
Lithuania will probably have to take in more refugees than initially planned, the country’s Prime Minister Algirdas Butkevičius said on Friday. […]
European Union
Foreign affairs
Lithuanian foreign minister talks about migration with Hungarian ambassador
In a meeting on 2 September with Hungarian Ambassador Zoltan Pecze, who is about to end his term of office in Lithuania, Linas Linkevičius, Minister of Foreign Affairs of Lithuania, expressed his gratitude for ambassador’s contribution to development of bilateral relations and expressed hope that the two countries will continue their friendly relations based on common values and solidarity, Lithuania’s MFA said. […]
Society
Politics
Lithuanian welfare minister expects municipalities to share refugees voluntarily
Lithuania’s Welfare and Labour Minister Algimanta Pabedinskienė expects that the country’s municipalities will voluntarily share the refugees after their integration period at the Refugees Reception Centre. […]
European Union
Lithuanian president: We must respond to Germany’s call to help solve refugee crisis
Lithuania will join in solidarity with other European countries in dealing with the migrant crisis, says President Dalia Grybauskaitė. […]
Politics
PM says Lithuanian government not considering to accept more refugees
The Government of Lithuania is currently not considering accepting more refugees than 325 it has committed to, although it does not discount such a possibility, the country’s Prime Minister Algirdas Butkevičius says. […]
Society
24-year-old volunteer wants to help Lithuanians better understand refugee crisis
As Lithuania has committed to chip in on the EU’s efforts to deal with the refugee crisis and accept some three hundred war-fleeing people from Syria and Eritrea, many Lithuanians have expressed sentiments that are far from welcoming. Not 26-year-old Marija Fedotovaitė, however, who is set to go the Greek Island of Lesbos to volunteer in camps for refugees that have been coming in thousands to Southern Europe. […]
Foreign affairs
Minister Linkevičius: Lithuania’s solidarity in refugee crisis shouldn’t be questioned
There are no reasons to doubt Lithuania’s solidarity in the efforts to deal with the migrant crisis in the European Union (EU), Foreign Minister Linas Linkevičius has stated. […]
Opinion
Opinion: Refugee quotas and missed opportunity for Eastern Europe
The current refugee and illegal immigration crisis in European Union received multiple opinions and positions. Mismanagement can be easily seen in the current situation. One of the most noticeable parts of it is a clash of interests inside the EU itself. The reluctance of the Eastern part of EU to cooperate with the West show that the governments of the Union do not agree on the same terms and that there are different points of view on the situation. This can be seen in the recent EU agreement for the relocation of the refugees, where ministers of the member states were responsible. […]
Society
Refugee integration more important than burqa bans, Lithuanian PM says
Integration of refugees is a more important issue than the question of whether to ban wearing burqas in public or not, says Lithuania’s Prime Minister Algirdas Butkevičius. […]
Society
Lithuanian MP wants ban on wearing burqas in public, activists disagree
As Lithuania prepares to receive several hundred refuges, Artūras Paulauskas, chairman of the Lithuanian Seimas National Security and Defense Committee, suggests introducing a ban for wearing Muslim burqas in public, saying that they might pose threat to national security. […]
Society
First refugees could reach Lithuania in January, interior minister says
Lithuania’s Interior Minister Saulius Skvernelis says that first refugees could come to Lithuania in January 2016. […]
European Union
Refugee relocation causes cultural anxiety in Baltic states
The Baltic states, along with other European Union nations, have agreed to take in a portion of refugees that have been fleeing wars in the Middle East. Diminutive though these numbers are, the fact that the refugees come from predominantly Muslim countries seems to inspire some fears among Estonians, Latvians and Lithuanians. […]
European Union
EU approves funding for migrant crisis, Lithuania to get EUR 17.2m
The EU announced on Monday that it has approved EUR 2.4 billion of funding to help member-states over the next few years cope with the flood of migrants entering the bloc. […]
Politics
Lithuanian interior minister inspects refugee accommodation facilities
Lithuania’s Interior Minister Saulius Skvernelis and Vice-Minister Elvinas Jankevičius visited the city of Jonava on Thursday to discuss accommodation and integration of refugees to be hosted by Lithuania. […]