Vilnius train stations step up security due to Russian troops train

Rokas Pukinskas, a spokesman for the Lithuanian State Border Guard Service, partially confirmed the information.

“Information from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs‘ Consular Department was received that a lot of young conscription-age men are going on this train. This is why security was stepped up. Our officers inspected the train but all the passengers had valid documents and visas. We have no problems with them and we cannot stop them from crossing our territory,” he said.

Following inspection, the train left for Kaliningrad in time.

On Tuesday, Russia launched drills to test its armed forces’ readiness in some regions, including Kaliningrad, and moved fighter jets, bombers and Iskander missile system to the enclave for the exercises.

Defence minister: There were indications of “little green men”

Lithuanian Minister of National Defence Juozas Olekas told reporters on Thursday that the government had been alerted of a possibility of a large number of Russian troops crossing Lithuania. The alert did not prove to be correct.

“From what we know, students of a navy school were on the train. And they went on [to Kaliningrad],” Olekas said.

He added that heightened security at the stations that the train passed was just a precautionary measure. “So others do not come,” he said.

“A signal was received” about a big number of young men from Russia on the train, according to Olekas. “There might have been suspicions that troops might also be on board. If that is the case, the train is stopped, they [soldiers] are made to disembark and sent back. There have been such cases. This time, however, the travellers were students of a navy school. We let them through,” Olekas said.