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Authorities have decided to shoot down helium balloons carrying cigarettes from neighbouring Belarus, government officials confirmed.

The measure comes after foreign objects crossing the border disrupted air traffic multiple times over the past week, with weekend disruptions, accompanied by temporary closures of Belarus border crossings temporarily each time.

Frontier crossing points remain suspended indefinitely due to the ongoing aerial incidents.

The government leader stated, "our nation stands prepared to implement maximum response protocols against airspace violations."

National Security Actions

Announcing the actions at a press conference, officials stated defense units were executing "every required action" to shoot down balloons.

Regarding frontier restrictions, officials noted embassy personnel maintain access across the international border, with special provisions for EU and Lithuanian nationals, though all other travel remains prohibited.

"In this way, we are sending a signal to Belarus declaring that unconventional threats won't be accepted within our territory, and we'll implement maximum countermeasures to prevent similar incidents," the Prime Minister emphasized.

Official communications saw no quick answer from Belarus.

Alliance Coordination

The Baltic nation intends to coordinate with partners over the threat posed from the balloons and may discuss activating the NATO consultation clause - a protocol allowing member state consultation on any issue of concern, specifically concerning defense matters - officials noted.

Airport Disruptions

Lithuanian airports were closed three times during holiday periods from balloon incidents originating from neighboring territory, disrupting air transport and passenger movement, per transportation authority data.

During the current month, multiple aerial devices crossed into Lithuanian airspace, causing dozens of flight disruptions impacting thousands, Lithuania's National Crisis Management Centre told the BBC.

This situation represents ongoing challenges: as of 6 October, hundreds of aerial devices documented crossing borders from neighboring territory during current year, an NCMC spokesman said, with nearly thousand incidents during previous year.

European Context

Additional aviation facilities - such as Scandinavian and German locations - faced comparable aviation security challenges, involving unmanned aerial vehicles, over past months.