Vilnius, March 6 (ELTA) – In February 2026, compared with January 2026, the average wholesale electricity price in Lithuania increased by 2% to EUR 155 per megawatt hour (MWh). This was because of cold weather and lower electricity generation in the country.

Lithuanian electricity transmission system operator Litgrid stated that electricity prices decreased at the end of the month as weather warmed up and solar power plants generated more electricity.

Electricity prices in Latvia and Estonia stood at EUR 155/MWh, in Poland they stood at EUR 116/MWh, in Finland – EUR 137/MWh, whereas in northern bidding areas of Norway and Sweden – EUR 90/MWh.

In February, electricity consumption in Lithuania totalled 1,339 gigawatt hours (GWh) and was by 9% lower than in January.

Electricity generation in Lithuania totalled 824 GWh, by 13% less than in January.

Local power plants generated 62% of electricity consumed in the country.

Wind farms generated 52% of all electricity in Lithuania or 431 GWh. However, this was by 21% less than in January.

Electricity generation by solar power plants tripled to 46 GWh. Thermal power plants generated 219 GWh of electricity, hydroelectric power plants – 60 GWh, and other power plants – 67 GWh.

Electricity import decreased by 11% to 629 GWh in a month. In February, 64% of electricity was imported from Scandinavia through the NordBalt power interconnection, 24% was imported from Latvia and 12% from Poland.

Electricity export decreased by 38% to 88 GWh last month. Most of it was exported to Latvia – 59%, while 34% was exported to Poland and 7% to Sweden.

Vilnius, March 6 (ELTA) – As tensions in the Middle East continue, President Gitanas Nausėda said Friday that Lithuania would consider allowing the United States to use its territory for logistics.

“As a reliable and responsible ally, we would consider this possibility. Most likely it would be granted not for any direct military purposes but for logistical purposes. We are taking into consideration that our territory is far away from those hotspots,” Nausėda told reporters on Friday.

A day earlier, Chief of Defence General Raimundas Vaikšnoras stated that Lithuania could contribute to US operations against Iran by providing territory for fighter jets and bombers. However, he stressed that this was a hypothetical possibility because a political decision had not been made.

Prime Minister Inga Ruginienė noted that this matter was not being discussed.

As reported, on 28 February, Israel announced to have started “preventative strikes against Iran to eliminate the threat to the State of Israel”. US President Donald Trump also confirmed that the US was conducting strikes in Iran.

Iran confirmed the death of Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei in the strikes. It also launched drones and missiles against the Gulf States that host US bases and against other countries of the Middle East.

Vilnius, March 6 (ELTA) – Entities linked to Russia, Belarus or China that pose a threat to national security are continuously seeking to advance their interests in strategic sectors in Lithuania and other Baltic States, Lithuanian intelligence said in its annual threat assessment published Friday.

Among the targets of such interest is the Lithuanian industrial group Achema Group, according to the report by the State Security Department (VSD) and the military intelligence service (AOTD).

“Intelligence has determined that one of the objects in which entities linked to Russia have recently shown interest is the Achema Group,” the report said.

It added that entities “that do not meet the interests of national security” sought to act through intermediaries and engage in lobbying to secure favourable positions from Lithuanian institutions regarding their investments.

VSD Director Remigijus Bridikis said there had been several recent attempts by entities linked to countries unfriendly to Lithuania to acquire stakes in the company.

“There was more than one case of attempts to acquire shares in Achema. Several cases involving entities linked to or cooperating with Russia are under investigation, with some developing into pre-trial probes,” Bridikis told reporters in a press conference on Friday.

Companies with links to Russia and Belarus, as well as individual citizens of these countries, have so far been interested in Lithuania’s transport and energy sectors, eyeing the high-tech sector increasingly too, according to the report.

They are constantly changing their tactics and looking for new opportunities to gain access to sectors or infrastructure of strategic importance, intelligence said. 

“One method of achieving this is to establish business contacts with entrepreneurs from other European countries or the US, convincing them that the cooperation will yield significant returns, while avoiding direct participation in the initiative. These entities require reliable entrepreneurs from other countries to conceal their involvement and create a positive image. When their plans fail in Lithuania, they try to implement them in other Baltic States,” the report reads.

Hungary’s MET Group, headquartered in Switzerland, was previously interested in Achema Group. However, in May 2025 the energy group said it would not proceed with the transaction to acquire 54.07% of shares in the leading producer of nitrogen fertiliser and chemicals in the Baltics.

The legal disputes with former Achema president Arūnas Laurinaitis and the various uncertainties outweigh the potential benefits of continuing with the transaction, MET Group stated in a press release back then.

Media reports linked the gas giant to Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban and Russian business figures.

Russia seeks to limit military mobility in Baltics

Russian entities remain interested in disrupting strategically important projects in Lithuania and other Baltic States, according to the intelligence report. 

Recently, Russian institutions have been paying a close attention to transport projects implemented by the Baltic States. It is highly likely that these institutions are interested in disrupting the projects in order to limit military mobility in the Baltic States.

Russian intelligence services likely will attempt to collect information about the infrastructure of the Port of Klaipėda and the strategically important cargo handled there by exploiting foreign-registered ship crew members. 

According to the intelligence, pro-Russian individuals belonging to crews of ships visiting the port have on several occasions photographed the port infrastructure and sensitive cargo. Russian intelligence services possibly would be willing to use the obtained information to plan sabotage or other kinetic operations.

Although the Baltic States have implemented projects aimed at securing their energy independence, Russian entities remain active in pursuing influence within the regional energy sector. 

They are developing new strategies to resume supplying the Baltic States with Russian energy resources and are looking for individuals who can help them to achieve these goals. While these strategies are unlikely to succeed, the active pursue of these interests likely will continue in the near term, the intelligence report said.

/Adds new paragraphs 4- 11/

Vilnius, March 7 (ELTA) – MP Kazys Starkevičius has announced his resignation from the Seimas, weeks after suspending his Conservative Party membership amid a large-scale corruption probe in which he was sought as a special witness.

“I have been a member of the Homeland Union–Lithuanian Christian Democrats since the time of Sąjūdis. I feel a great responsibility to my community, with which I have been for over thirty years, and to the comrades who have accompanied me all this time. All these years I have worked responsibly and with all my might for the state and its people,” Starkevičius wrote on Facebook.

“I regret that such a situation has arisen that I have to make this decision, which is painful for me personally – as of today I am stepping down as a member of the Seimas,” he added.

The Central Electoral Commission (VRK) has confirmed that it had received Starkevičius’s resignation earlier on Friday. His seat in the Seimas is expected to be taken by former lawmaker and fellow conservative Angelė Jakavonytė.

In February, the Special Investigation Service (STT) searched the homes and parliamentary offices of MP Saulius Skvernelis, former prime minister and parliament speaker, and Kazys Starkevičius, an MP from the Homeland Union (TS-LKD) party, former agriculture minister.

The searches were carried out to check whether political favouritism had occurred in a large-scale corruption case.

A special witness is a legal status when, based on the pre-trial investigation, a person is in an intermediate position between a witness and a suspect.

Starkevičius refused to give testimony to the STT as a special witness.

Previously it was reported that last December 13 people were detained and 6 of them arrested for 1–2 months in the probe into large-scale corruption at the State Plant Service under the Ministry of AGriculture.

Based on the investigation, companies transporting plants and plant products might have paid large bribes to obtain phytosanitary certificates. It is suspected that EUR 1.5 million in bribes might have been paid. 

More than 100 searches led to the seizure of over EUR 1.3 million in cash, around 8 kilogrammes of gold worth roughly EUR 1 million, thousands of packs of cigarettes, tens of thousands of litres of alcohol, as well as cocaine and explosives.

Vilnius, March 6 (ELTA) – One of the largest producers of organic and conventional commodities and food products in the Baltic States, Auga group has announced the appointment of Laurynas Miškinis, one of the long-standing members of the company’s management team, as chief executive officer, effective from 31 March 2026. He succeeds Elina Chodzkaitė-Barauskienė, who had been serving as the company’s acting chief executive officer, Auga Group said in a press release.

“Laurynas’ commercial, managerial, and organisational experience will strengthen the organisation’s streamlined structure and ensure continuity in implementing the Company’s restructuring plan”, says Kęstutis Juščius, chairman of the Board of Auga group.

Since 2016, Miškinis has led the Organic Product Development and Commerce Department at Auga group. He actively contributed to the development and commercialisation of preserved products for end-consumer use, which became Auga group’s hallmark and successfully entered global markets. Following the successful sale of corresponding production unit to AB Kauno grūdai, Miškinis and his team introduced the Sustainable Product Basket, which has become an integral part of the everyday life of organic product consumers.

Elina Chodzkaitė-Barauskienė, who served as the CEO of Auga group since November 2023, will continue her career in the defence industry.

“We are grateful to Elina for her many years of work in creating and implementing the company’s strategy and for guiding the management team through one of the most challenging periods while initiating the group’s restructuring”, says Juščius.

Vilnius, March 6 (ELTA) – Following approval from the Lithuanian Competition Council, Tesonet has completed a EUR 5 million investment in the Finbee group (UAB Holbee). The investment is intended to strengthen the group’s capital base and expand financing volumes for consumers and small businesses in Lithuania and international markets, reports startup association Unicorns Lithuania.

The transaction represents a significant vote of confidence in Finbee’s long-term strategy and growth trajectory. The partnership is expected to accelerate the company’s expansion into new markets, enhance customer experience solutions for both borrowers and investors, and support broader marketing initiatives.

“We view Tesonet’s investment as both a meaningful endorsement and an important catalyst for our next stage of growth,” said Darius Noreika, CEO of Finbee, a peer-to-peer lending and crowdfunding platform. “This partnership provides greater capacity to scale internationally, invest in service and technology improvements for our clients, and expand access to financing for individuals and small businesses. We also plan to increase the share of institutional capital within our funding structure.”

Noreika emphasized that Tesonet will serve not only as a financial investor but also as a strategic partner, contributing expertise in technology development and scaling high-growth organizations.

“We strongly believe in the Finbee team, their experience, and their drive,” said Eglė Eidimtaitė, Head of Investments at Tesonet. “Through years of consistent performance, Finbee has established itself as a successful growth-stage company delivering solid annual results while building meaningful synergies with the small business sector. Companies at this stage are a core focus of our investment strategy. We also highly value that Finbee is a Lithuanian-capital company and see significant opportunity to support its international expansion.”

Prior to the transaction, UAB Holbee was owned 85.01% by UAB ZSC Techteam and 14.99% by UAB Turtai. Following the issuance of new shares acquired by Tesonet, Tesonet now holds an 18.52% stake in the company. Existing shareholders will retain 69.26% and 12.22% ownership, respectively.

Vilnius, March 6 (ELTA) – ELTA Brief provides a concise overview of the key events of Friday, 6 March, in Lithuania and around the world.

On Friday, intelligence agencies published the yearly National Threat Assessment, describing threats of Chinese influence, as well as Russian and Belarusian attempts to influence strategic transport, energy and high-tech sectors. A key development includes Conservative MP Kazys Starkevičius’ decision to step down from parliament amid a corruption investigation in the State Plant Service.

LITHUANIAN POLITICAL NEWS

The National Threat Assessment 2026 warns about growing security risks for Lithuanian citizens living in and travelling to China. According to Lithuania’s intelligence agencies, because of tense bilateral relations Chinese security services are more motivated to collect information about Lithuanian citizens residing in or travelling to China, and use this information for intelligence or political pressure. China’s growing military power is also noted, as are strengthening ties with Russia and Chinese artificial intelligence chatbots DeepSeek and Qwen, which have been introduced to the international market. Meanwhile, in order to reduce international isolation, the Belarusian regime is also increasing cooperation with China. The intelligence report states that despite the declared aspiration for independence, the Orthodox Dioceses of Vilnius and Lithuania remain dependent on the Moscow Patriarchate, and Russia, using these dioceses, spreads its ideological influence in the Lithuanian Orthodox community.

Kazys Starkevičius, who is involved in an anti-corruption investigation, has stepped down from parliament. The politician announced this on a social network on Friday. Starkevičius, who represented the Homeland Union-Lithuanian Christian Democrats (TS-LKD), said he was not worried and would continue to defend himself by legal means. TS-LKD leader Laurynas Kasčiūnas stated that his colleague made the right decision and it should serve as an example to other politicians on how to act in such situations. Meanwhile, Seimas Speaker Juozas Olekas also welcomed Starkevičius’ decision to step down and stressed that it would ease the situation for parliament. The lawmaker will be replaced in the Seimas by Angelė Jakavonytė.

The Prosecutor General’s Office has terminated the pre-trial investigation related to the circumstances indicated by former intelligence officer Tomas Gailius in the 2019 letter to the chairman of the Seimas Committee on National Security and Defence. Prosecutors opened the pre-trial investigation in July 2024 regarding signs of abuse of office. Once the probe was carried out, it was established that no crime had been committed. It was concluded that intelligence screening was carried out lawfully, following existing protocols and there was no abuse of office. In June 2024, the Seimas approved the much-debated findings of a parliamentary investigation commission that examined the information provided by Gailius, the whistleblower at the State Security Department (VSD). After several months of analysis and testimony from a dozen officials, it was concluded that the then head of the VSD, Darius Jauniškis, assisted then presidential candidate Gitanas Nausėda by collecting intelligence information about his environment. MPs came to the conclusion that the president or a person acting on his behalf informed the VSD director who were the people in his environment. It is believed that data collected by the VSD might have been revealed to the president.

The Prosecutor General’s Office has transferred to court a criminal case in which five citizens of Lithuania, Russia and Ukraine are accused of organising and planning to commit terrorist acts in different countries while operating in an organised terrorist group. The criminal case was separated from the large-scale complex investigation carried out by the Lithuanian Criminal Police Bureau, which currently identifies at least 16 citizens of different countries who organised, planned and contributed to committing terrorist crimes in different countries. During the investigation police officers actively cooperated with the State Security Department (VSD). It was established that on 19 July 2024 a Lithuanian citizen, acting together with his accomplices, used the international parcel delivery and transportation services of DHL and DPD to send 4 parcels from Vilnius with homemade explosive-incendiary charges. Two of these parcels were shipped to the United Kingdom by DHL cargo planes, the other two were sent to Poland by DPD cargo trucks.

LITHUANIAN BUSINESS NEWS

The latest National Threat Assessment was published on Friday identifying the possibility of Belarus building a new nuclear power plant, as well as attempts by hostile states to influence strategic companies such as the Achema Group. According to the State Security Department (VSD) and the Second Investigation Department (AOTD), companies with connections to Russia and Belarus, as well as individual citizens of these countries, are interested in Lithuanian transport, energy and high-tech sectors. They seek to gain access to infrastructure of strategic importance for Lithuania, and use Lithuanian companies as a cover to take over Western military industrial technologies. According to intelligence agencies, Russia continues to seek to disrupt the development of strategically important military mobility projects in the Baltic States, such as the Rail Baltica railway, and collects information about the infrastructure of Klaipeda Seaport. According to Lithuanian intelligence services, incidents in the Baltic Sea in 2023–2025, when strategically important underwater infrastructure was damaged, are not linked to the deliberate actions of the crews of ships visiting Russian seaports, yet it is emphasised that this infrastructure remains vulnerable.

The Ministry of Agriculture has launched an investigation into possible misconduct in office by Director of the State Food and Veterinary Service (VMVT) Audronė Mikalauskienė. The director says that the ministry informed her about the probe at the beginning of February. The investigation is being carried out on the basis of a complaint by an employee who was dismissed during the 2024 reform of the VMVT. Judicial proceedings were initiated regarding his dismissal, after which he was reinstated. The director also mentioned that information about the investigation was made public at a time when her competencies were being assessed.

FOREIGN NEWS

The US-Israeli military operation in Iran continues for its seventh day. Israel said on Thursday it was moving into the next phase of the conflict and on Friday began a new wave of strikes on Iran’s infrastructure. The Israeli chief of the general staff also hinted at “further surprises” in future operations in Iran but did not specify further. The US president said Iran’s air defense and missile capabilities had been completely or nearly destroyed, and deploying American troops in Iran would be a “waste of time”. The Iranian military meanwhile said it had attacked US bases in Kuwait and vowed to continue the strikes.

Ukraine has accused Hungary of taking hostage employees of Oshchadbank. Seven Ukrainians detained in Budapest were driving from Austria to Ukraine in two bank cars and were transporting USD 40 million in cash and nine kilogrammes of gold. Ukraine sent an official note demanding their immediate release. Following the news, Ukraine warned its citizens to avoid traveling to Hungary. Later on Friday, Budapest said it had detained the Ukrainians for “suspected money laundering”. However, given that money shipments were overseen by former senior Ukrainian officials, it would expel them from the country. The Bank of Ukraine said it intended to send a team of staff to the Hungarian capital to investigate the case.

The Pentagon has formally informed tech giant Anthropic that the company and its AI agent Claude have been declared supply chain risks, US media reported. This is the first time that such strict measures have been taken against a US company. Until now it has only been applied against companies from hostile countries, such as China’s Huawei. Following this decision, suppliers and contractors of products for the US defence sector will be required to confirm that they do not use models of the Claude artificial intelligence robot developed by Anthropic when working with the Department of Defence. The dispute between the company and the Department of Defence stemmed from Anthropic’s stance that its technology should not be used for mass surveillance or for fully autonomous weapon systems. This infuriated the head of the Pentagon, who insisted that the agency complies with the law and that suppliers with whom contracts are signed cannot dictate the conditions under which their products should be used.

Vilnius, March 6 (ELTA) – The Bank of Lithuania has conducted an inspection of the activities of the electronic money institution Paytend Europe, UAB. The inspection has identified serious and systematic violations related to the monitoring of business relationships and transactions, the management of money laundering and terrorist financing risks, and the internal control system. The institution failed to ensure effective control measures proportionate to the scale of its activities and the nature of the risks involved, said the central bank.

The business relationship monitoring measures applied by Paytend Europe, UAB were not sufficient to identify suspicious customer activity. The inspection identified serious and systematic deficiencies across all stages of the monitoring process: from internal control procedures to employee responsibilities and monitoring measures applied in practice. As a result of these deficiencies, alerts indicating potentially suspicious activity were not consistently analysed in a timely and thorough manner, and internal investigations were conducted only formally or remained incomplete. Furthermore, despite the presence of indicators warranting further escalation, the institution failed to submit suspicious transaction reports to the Financial Crime Investigation Service.

During the period under inspection, the following significant deficiencies were identified in the area of the prevention of money laundering and terrorist financing: Paytend Europe, UAB did not have in place effective internal control procedures, did not ensure a clear distribution of functions, and did not allocate sufficient resources in this area. The institution also failed to ensure proper management of conflicts of interest, without control functions having been appropriately separated from business interests. 

In addition, it was found that the electronic money institution provided to the Bank of Lithuania incorrect information about its business relationship with a high-risk customer and failed to retain and submit to the Bank of Lithuania the correspondence related to its business relationship with this customer.

The institution failed to approve and submit, within the set time limits, its audited annual financial statements for 2024 and other mandatory documents, as well as supervisory reports.

Upon assessing all the circumstances, the licence of Paytend Europe, UAB has been revoked. This means that, as of 3 March, the institution may no longer provide any financial services and must inform its customers about the procedure for settling with them within five business days. Customers who hold funds in the accounts opened with Paytend Europe, UAB must apply directly to the institution concerned for their return. Funds must be returned to an account at another financial institution as indicated by the customer.

Vilnius, March 6 (ELTA) – The latest National Threat Assessment published on Friday states that tense bilateral relations with Lithuania increase the motivation of Chinese intelligence services to collect information about Lithuanian citizens living in or travelling to China and use it for intelligence or political pressure.

“Alongside Russia, North Korea and Iran, China believes that the post-Cold War international order needs reshaping because it no longer reflects current geopolitical realities and serves the interests of the West, particularly the US,” the report states.

The State Security Department (VSD) and the Second Investigation Department (AOTD) stated that by increasing its military and geopolitical influence China seeks to create an alternative world order.

“To achieve this goal, Beijing is making efforts to take over the leadership of a bloc of countries that are hostile to the West. China is expanding its cooperation with Russia in order to gain greater influence in the Indian and Pacific regions and globally. Intelligence activities, data collection and information censorship pose security risks to Lithuanian citizens both in China and in Lithuania. It is highly likely that Beijing’s influence will grow in the near term; and attempts to form an alternative world system will become more pronounced, which will increase geopolitical tensions,” the report reads.

Intelligence agencies warn that Chinese security services initiate meetings with Lithuanian citizens residing in China, are trying to determine their contacts, political views, circumstances of residence in China and their views towards Taiwan. This information helps Chinese intelligence to determine vulnerabilities of Lithuanian citizens striving to involve them in covert activities against Lithuania’s interests.

The report also notes the threat of Chinese artificial intelligence (AI) chatbots, DeepSeek and Qwen, that are being promoted as alternatives to Western AI models.

“While this demonstrates China’s ambition and capability to compete with the West, it also poses challenges for users in terms of information censorship and personal data security when using these chatbots,” the VSD and AOTD say.

According to the National Threat Assessment, DeepSeek collects data created by users themselves, such as query texts and various documents shared with the chatbot; automatically accessible information, such as device data and IP address; as well as third-party data, such as information linked to a Google account.

According to Chinese law, the government is entitled to access data collected by technology companies. Chinese-developed AI software possibly lacks adequate cybersecurity measures necessary to protect the user data. Shortly after its launch, more than a million pieces of data collected by the DeepSeek chatbot were leaked, including chat system metadata and chat transcripts.

Vilnius, March 6 (ELTA) – On 4-5 March in Canada, Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs Audra Plepytė Attended a high-level Ottawa Conference on Security and Defence, reports the MFA.

During the conference, the deputy minister presented Lithuania and the region’s security situation and Lithuania’s experience in consistently increasing defence investments, boosting military readiness, and developing a comprehensive resilience model.

“Operating in a complex, dynamic security environment, Lithuania is purposefully strengthening its defence capabilities and increasing investment in national defence. However, modern defence extends beyond the military dimension and is based on the resilience of the state and society as a whole. Lithuania is consistently developing a model based on the principle of universal defence, which mandates the involvement of not only state institutions but also civil society, business, self-government, and other partners,” said the deputy minister.

She also underlined the close cooperation of Lithuania and the countries of the region with Canada in the field of security and defence, as well as joint commitments to strengthening Euro-Atlantic security.

“The presence of allied forces in the region, including Canada, is a key deterrence factor for Russia. A strong transatlantic bond and close cooperation with partners are essential to ensure long-term security in the Euro-Atlantic area,” said Plepytė.

During the visit to Canada, bilateral meetings with high-level Canadian officials are also planned to discuss bilateral relations between Lithuania and Canada, deepening security and defence cooperation, further support for Ukraine, and ensuring Russia's accountability.

The Ottawa Conference on Security and Defence is Canada’s main national security and defence forum, which is celebrating its 94th edition this year. The event focuses on Canada’s pledge to increase its defence spending to 5% of GDP by 2035, examining the impact of this decision on military readiness, national capabilities, and international partnerships.

Vilnius, March 6 (ELTA) – A bilateral meeting held during a visit of Minister of Justice Rita Tamašunienė to Brussels with Javier Zarzalejos, Chair of the European Parliament's Committee on Civil Liberties, Justice and Home Affairs, focused on new initiatives of the European Commission aimed at strengthening judicial cooperation in criminal matters. International legal mechanisms for achieving justice and defending national interests in the context of combating migrant smuggling and hybrid threats were also discussed, reports the Ministry of Justice.

A discussion with Ilhan Kyuchyuk, Chair of the European Parliament's Committee on Legal Affairs, covered issues related to the legal protection of intellectual property in the European context – supplementary protection certificates for patents. Attention was also paid to strengthening the legal protection of vulnerable adults who are unable to take proper care of themselves due to insufficiency of personal faculties and to aspects of the uniform application of EU law.

During a bilateral meeting with Anna Cavazzini, Chair of the Committee on the Internal Market and Consumer Protection, Ms Tamašunienė stressed the importance of consumer protection, especially in the digital space, as well as the adequate protection of socially vulnerable consumers, in particular children in the virtual space, and the fight against addictive grey technologies.

On 6 March, the Minister of Justice met with Christine Roger, Director-General for Justice and Home Affairs of the Council of the European Union. They discuss in detail the priorities of Lithuanian Presidency of the Council of the EU and the main aspects of preparations for the Presidency.

Bilateral meetings are held on the margins of the EU Justice and Home Affairs Council.

Vilnius, March 6 (ELTA) – A FlyDubai plane evacuating Lithuanian citizens from the United Arab Emirates (UAE) took off from Dubai on Friday afternoon and is heading for Vilnius.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs said 166 passengers were on the plane, including 120 Lithuanian citizens, while other passengers were from Latvia and Estonia.

The flight is evacuating the most vulnerable individuals: pregnant women, families with minors, the elderly, as well as individuals with critical illnesses and mobility impairment.

According to Ramūnas Davidonis, Lithuanian ambassador to the UAE, two families did not make it to the evacuation flight for various reasons, but the situation is being addressed and a Cypriot ambassador suggested they could travel on a plane heading for Cyprus.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Lithuanian Embassy to the UAE continue providing assistance to Lithuanians in the Middle East looking for available flights to Lithuania or other countries.

According to the MFA, there are approximately 1,100 Lithuanians in the Middle East, of them 800 in the UAE.

As reported, on 28 February, Israel announced to have started “preventative strikes against Iran to eliminate the threat to the State of Israel”. US President Donald Trump also confirmed that the US was conducting strikes in Iran.

Iran confirmed the death of Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei in the strikes. It also launched drones and missiles against the Gulf States that host US bases and against other countries of the Middle East.