Lithuania to shoot down smuggling balloons, PM warns

Guvern

Lithuania will begin to shoot down balloons used to smuggle cigarettes from neighbouring Belarus, its prime minister has warned. The measure comes after balloons entering Lithuanian airspace forced Vilnius Airport to close multiple times over the past week, including at the weekend, with the government also closing Belarus border crossings temporarily each time. Border checkpoints will now be closed indefinitely in response to the helium weather balloons. Prime Minister Inga Ruginiene said "we