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Lithuania will begin to intercept and destroy aerial devices transporting illicit goods from Belarus, the country's leader announced.

This action responds after balloons entering Lithuanian airspace forced Vilnius Airport to close repeatedly in recent days, with weekend disruptions, with the government also closing frontier checkpoints during these events.

Border checkpoints will now be closed indefinitely in response to the helium weather balloons.

According to official declarations, "authorities will not hesitate to employ maximum response protocols when our airspace is violated."

National Security Actions

Outlining the strategy to media, officials stated defense units were executing "complete operational protocols" to shoot down balloons.

Concerning border measures, the Prime Minister confirmed diplomatic movement continues for cross-border diplomatic missions, and EU citizens and Lithuanians can enter from Belarus, however general movement continues suspended.

"This represents our clear message to Belarus stating that asymmetric operations face opposition within our territory, and we'll implement maximum countermeasures to halt these operations," government officials declared.

Authorities received no prompt reaction 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 about national security issues, especially related to its security - the Prime Minister concluded.

Travel Impacts

Lithuanian airports were closed three times at the weekend due to weather balloons originating from neighboring territory, affecting 112 flights and more than 16,500 passengers, per transportation authority data.

Earlier this month, 25 balloons entered Lithuania from Belarus, leading to 30 flight cancellations affecting 6,000 passengers, Lithuania's National Crisis Management Centre told the BBC.

These incidents continue previous patterns: as of 6 October, 544 balloons were recorded entering Lithuania from neighboring territory during current year, per government spokesperson comments, with nearly thousand incidents during previous year.

Regional Situation

International air travel hubs - covering northern and central European sites - faced comparable aviation security challenges, including drone sightings, during current period.