Lithuania completes border reinforcements with Russian exclave of Kaliningrad

September 5 () –

The Lithuanian government said on Thursday that it had completed work to reinforce its border with the Russian exclave of Kaliningrad by installing more barbed wire and anti-tank defences. “It is important to be prepared no matter what happens,” said Defence Minister Laurynas Kasciunas.

Lithuanian authorities have blocked the area around the Queen Louise Bridge in the town of Panemune, which is owned by Russia. “We can only set up obstacles in front of it,” where “the movement of enemy forces could be blocked,” Kasciunas said.

He also said that more obstacles are planned. “The enemy will be hampered not only by the steep slopes of the river, but also by mines, dragon teeth, barbed wire and concertina wire,” he said.

“In the event of a military invasion, enemy forces would need significantly more time and resources to remove obstacles (…) giving our forces more time to prepare for defence,” the defence statement said.

For Interior Minister Agne Bilotaite, such measures demonstrate Lithuania’s commitment to the external security of the European Union. “We will use every opportunity to receive funding from the European Commission to strengthen border control,” she said.

The government plans to reinforce other areas of the border that separates them from both Kaliningrad and Belarus, which could entail an expenditure, according to its own figures, of some 600 million euros over the next ten years.