{"id":179920,"date":"2026-03-18T21:21:21","date_gmt":"2026-03-18T18:21:21","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/pozirk.online\/en\/news\/179920\/"},"modified":"2026-03-18T21:21:23","modified_gmt":"2026-03-18T18:21:23","slug":"vilnius-dismisses-lithuanian-executives-meeting-with-belarus-prime-minister-as-propaganda-stunt","status":"publish","type":"articles","link":"https:\/\/pozirk.online\/en\/news\/179920\/","title":{"rendered":"Vilnius dismisses Lithuanian executives\u2019 meeting with Belarus\u2019 prime minister as propaganda stunt"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

March 18, Pozirk.<\/em><\/strong> Vilnius has dismissed yesterday\u2019s meeting between Lithuanian and Polish trucking executives and Belarusian Prime Minister Alaksandar Tur\u010dyn as \u201ca propaganda campaign that is part of the regime\u2019s hybrid effort\u201d to increase pressure on Lithuania, LRT<\/em> reported.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cBelarus, through illegal and unilateral actions, is deliberately holding EU-registered trucks on its territory and preventing them from leaving, while threatening their confiscation,\u201d the foreign ministry said, demanding that Belarus immediately release the vehicles.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The International Transport and Logistics Alliance (TTLA) and the LINAVA National Association of Road Carriers told BNS<\/em> that their members did not take part in the March 17 meeting. The executives who attended the meeting with the Belarusian prime minister are not affiliated with these organizations.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

TTLA head Povilas Dri\u017eas welcomed the prime minister\u2019s statement that the trucks would not be confiscated but noted that parking fees could exceed the value of the vehicles.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Belarusian state media reported that the delegation of executives was led by Krzysztof Songin of Sontransa and that more than 70 Lithuanian companies had signed an appeal to Belarusian ruler Alaksandar \u0141uka\u0161enka.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Songin declined to comment to BNS<\/em>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

LINAVA head Erlandas Mik\u0117nas described the situation as a de facto freeze of Lithuanian companies\u2019 assets, with reported losses in the millions, and warned that the precedent threatens all European carriers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Minsk will \u201cnotify partners from Lithuania and Poland\u201d of its decision regarding the stranded foreign trucks, Deputy Foreign Minister Ihar Siakreta said yesterday after the meeting.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The talks did not produce a breakthrough. The Belarusian cabinet issued a statement that did not clarify whether the trucks would be released or why the authorities had refused to do so. Belarusian officials stressed only that trucking companies must pay all parking and security fees, which executives described as exorbitant.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Minsk barred Lithuanian trucks from leaving the country after Vilnius closed the Medininkai\u2013Kamienny \u0141oh and \u0160al\u010dininkai\u2013Bieniakoni border checkpoints for three weeks in late October and November 2025, following incursions by air balloons carrying smuggled cigarettes from Belarus.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Belarus pushed for consultations between the two countries\u2019 foreign ministries, while Lithuania rejected direct diplomatic talks, having significantly downgraded official contacts after what it described as Belarus\u2019 rigged 2020 presidential election.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Vilnius views political negotiations with Minsk as an attempt to break the international isolation of \u0141uka\u0161enka\u2019s regime and potentially pave the way for easing sanctions.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Belarus still reportedly holds at least 1,071 vehicles belonging to 149 Lithuanian transport companies, including 496 trucks and 575 semi-trailers. LINAVA estimates their total value at \u20ac15,907,020.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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