Lithuania wants to provide its border guards with heavy weapons.

Lithuanian Interior Minister Agnė Bilotaitė stated this.

She noted that this decision was made in response to the lessons of Russia’s war against Ukraine.

“The Defense Ministry will contribute to equipping border guards with heavy weapons. I wouldn’t like to elaborate as everything is still being sorted out,” Bilotaitė added.

At the same time, Rustamas Liubajevas, Commander of the State Border Guard Service, stated that the weapons to be transferred would include both mobile and stationary weapons. The weapons will be intended to destroy manpower and light military equipment.

“The weapons we plan to acquire during the first phase will not require special training,” the SBGS chief pointed out.

In April of this year, Militarnyi reported that the Lithuanian Ministry of Defense is conducting comprehensive reinforcement of a number of border sections together with the Ministry of Internal Affairs.

The decision was made following a conversation between Defense Minister Laurynas Kasčiūnas and Minister of the Interior Agnė Bilotaitė.

First of all, they discussed comprehensive approaches to strengthening the border and building appropriate fortifications there.

Additionally, a proposal to strengthen the armament of the border guards, namely the transfer of machine guns from the armed forces stockpiles, was considered. In addition, the Sejm discussed the issue of creating an additional number of firing ranges to enable border guards to conduct more intensive training.

It should be noted that strengthening the border should provide protection against saboteurs and protect critical infrastructure.

Following Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine, Lithuania has been strengthening its armed forces as part of its defense against a potential Russian invasion.