VILNIUS: Some 2,000 trucks were stranded Friday in Belarus after Lithuania closed its border in response to recent airspace disruptions, a truckers association said.
Dozens of balloons loaded with illegal cigarettes entered Lithuania’s airspace last week, forcing the temporary closure of airports in the capital Vilnius and Kaunas, affecting numerous flights and thousands of passengers.
Vilnius and the European Union denounced the incidents as a “hybrid attack.”
“Around 2,000 trucks are stranded in Belarus,” Oleg Tarasov, vice president of Linava, the Lithuanian road carriers’ association, told AFP on Friday.
“The Belarusians have seized all Lithuanian vehicles and are not allowing them to leave (the border area). We are being held hostage, our goods are being held hostage,” he said.
An estimated 60 million euros ($69 million) in assets are currently stuck in Belarus, according to Tarasov, who warned such delays could cause around 18 million euros in monthly losses.
The Linava official criticized the government for not consulting or informing road carriers ahead of the closure, which affects cross-border freight transport.
Lithuania’s logistics sector employs some 54,000 drivers who operate around 56,000 trucks, according to data provided by the association.
Lithuania, a NATO and European Union member, shut its last two border crossings with Belarus until November 30 in response to last week’s incident.
Four other border crossings with Belarus were closed in 2023 and 2024 due to security concerns after Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
Neighbouring Poland also temporarily shut its border with Belarus in September when Minsk hosted Russia-led military exercises, and has since reopened only some crossings.
2,000 trucks stuck in Belarus after Lithuania closes border: association
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2,000 trucks stuck in Belarus after Lithuania closes border: association
- “Around 2,000 trucks are stranded in Belarus,” Oleg Tarasov, vice president of Linava, the Lithuanian road carriers’ association, told AFP
- The Linava official criticized the government for not consulting or informing road carriers ahead of the closure
Iranian drones hit Azerbaijan airport
- Azerbaijan on Thursday summoned the Iranian envoy after two people were wounded in drone hits on an airport and near a school
DUBAI: Azerbaijan on Thursday summoned the Iranian envoy after two people were wounded in drone hits on an airport and near a school.
The attacks around midday involved at least two drones that crossed from Iran into Azerbaijan’s exclave of Nakhichevan, which borders Iran and is separated from mainland Azerbaijan by Armenia, said a foreign ministry statement.
“One drone fell on the terminal building of Nakhichevan Airport, while another drone fell near a school building in the village of Shekerabad,” the ministry said, damaging the airport and wounding two civilians.
The ministry said it had summoned Iranian envoy in Baku to express “strong protest” over the attack, which “contradicts the norms and principles of international law and contributes to rising tensions in the region.
“Azerbaijan reserves the right to take appropriate retaliatory measures,” it added.
Iran has long expressed concern that Israel — a close ally of Azerbaijan and a key arms supplier — could use Azerbaijani territory to stage attacks.
Last June, Azerbaijan reassured Iran that it would not allow its territory to be used for attacks against Tehran after Israel launched a large-scale strike on Iranian targets.
Tehran has historically been wary of separatist sentiment among its ethnic Azerbaijani minority, which makes up around 10 million of Iran’s 83 million citizens.
Azerbaijan’s foreign ministry lodged an official protest with the Iranian embassy on Thursday after a pair of Iranian drones flew across the border into Azerbaijan and injured two people at an airport in the Nakhchivan exclave.
“This attack on the territory of Azerbaijan contradicts the norms and principles of international law and contributes to increased tensions in the region,” the foreign ministry said in a statement.
“We demand that the Islamic Republic of Iran clarify the matter in the shortest possible time, provide an explanation and take the necessary urgent measures to prevent such incidents from recurring in the future.”
The Iranian ambassador to Azerbaijan has been summoned to the foreign ministry to receive a formal note of protest, Baku said.
The statement said Azerbaijan reserved the right to carry out “appropriate response measures” against Tehran.
Azerbaijan’s ministry said one drone fell on the terminal building of the Nakhchivan International Airport, which is approximately 10 km (6 miles) across the border from Iran, and another drone landed close to a school building in a nearby village.
A source close to the Azerbaijani government told Reuters a fire had started as a result of the incident.
Video footage shared by the source showed black smoke rising near the airport and damage to the skylight inside the terminal building.
