The Government, taking into account the increased threats to state security posed by illegal migration and the changed tactics of Belarusian intelligence and border officers at the border, approved the draft Government Resolution prepared by the Ministry of the Interior.
The government has decided to ban motorcycles, mopeds, or motorized bicycles from passing through the Medininkai and Salcininkai border checkpoints. Movement through these border checkpoints with Belarus will be possible only by cars. Since March 1, 2024 , after the ban on pedestrians and cyclists passing through the Medininkai and Salcininkai border checkpoints, a significant increase in attempts to cross the border on motorcycles, mopeds and motorized bicycles has been recorded.
In the first quarter of 2024, 285 such cases were recorded; in 2025, 6,170 cases were already detected during the same period. In addition, the Government resolution proposes to temporarily restrict the movement of persons through the Salcininkai and Medininkai border checkpoints if it is determined that Belarusian officials are instrumentalizing migrants. Recently, attempts have been observed by Belarusian officials to direct migrants through border checkpoints without the necessary documents or without meeting the requirements of the Schengen Borders Code. The State Border Guard Service is entrusted with ensuring the implementation of the provisions of this Government Resolution.
Currently, Lithuania applies complex state border protection measures - a physical barrier has been built on the border with Belarus, the state border is monitored by modern surveillance systems, and rapid response to incidents is carried out. Due to these measures, there is essentially no possibility of illegally entering the territory of the Republic of Lithuania through the "green" border.
This draft Government Resolution is in line with the Communication adopted by the European Commission on 11 December 2024 on countering hybrid threats using migration as a weapon and strengthening security at the EU's external borders and the Schengen Borders Code. Failure to adopt new legal regulations on the border with Belarus would essentially create conditions for a massive flow of illegal migration through border checkpoints.