News

On November 13, the Vice-Minister of Foreign Affairs Audra Plepytė met in Vilnius with NATO's Assistant Secretary General for Political Affairs and Security Policy Boris Ruge to discuss key items on NATO's agenda, including strengthening deterrence and defence, commitments to increase defence spending, the regional security situation and support for Ukraine.

The Vice-Minister emphasized that Lithuania firmly upholds its commitment to allocate no less than 5% of GDP to defense and, by 2026, will become the NATO ally investing the most in defense—5.38% of GDP. At the meeting, Plepytė highlighted the increasing violations of allied airspace by Russia and Belarus' hybrid attacks against Lithuania.

“More recently, hybrid provocations, including smuggler balloons, have become a daily reality in Lithuanian airspace. The regime’s actions are deliberate and hostile – a conscious refusal to control organised criminal activities by continuing provocations and increasing pressure on our region. In response to these threats, Lithuania has taken national measures and is working with allies to further strengthen the Alliance's deterrence and defence capabilities on the eastern flank of NATO," the Vice-Minister said.

Possibilities for strengthening Ukraine’s defence support were discussed. Plepytė noted that comprehensive assistance to Ukraine was directly related to the future of our common security architecture. Therefore, the contribution of each ally of the Alliance is important. In this regard, NATO's Prioritized Ukraine Requirements List (PURL) initiative is an especuially important and useful instrument, to which Lithuania has committed to allocate EUR 30 million.

NATO's Assistant Secretary General for Political Affairs and Security Policy, Boris Ruge, attends the meeting of NATO Security Policy Directors in Vilnius on 12–14 November.