Deputy Minister A. Burkovskienė: Threats Don't Respect Borders, So Our Response Must Be Regional
A meeting of Baltic and Polish representatives took place at the Ministry of the Interior, where Deputy Interior Minister Ana Burkovskienė and her counterparts discussed civil protection, crisis management, and public preparedness. The talks focused primarily on regional cooperation in preparing for potential mass evacuation scenarios and on practical state readiness to face hybrid and military threats.
Representatives from Lithuania, Latvia, Estonia, and Poland emphasized that the current geopolitical situation and growing hybrid threats demand not only national responses but coordinated regional solutions. According to the Deputy Minister, civil protection is increasingly shifting toward the level of civil defence.
"Recent geopolitical events have shown that threats do not stop at national borders. That is why our cooperation has become a necessity. We must move from political agreements to practical action — joint exercises, coordinated procedures, and effective information sharing," said Deputy Minister A. Burkovskienė.
A significant portion of the meeting was dedicated to preparing for large-scale population evacuation across the region. Discussions covered the implementation of a memorandum of understanding signed by the Baltic states and Poland, the planning of evacuation corridors, transport capacity, accommodation options, and information exchange mechanisms.
Statistics Lithuania presented how data governance and analytical tools can support decision-making during crises and emergencies.
Regional security topics also included the outcomes of NATO resilience expert consultations, the strengthening of the EU Civil Protection Mechanism, and a recent uptick in drone-related incidents across the region.
Participants noted that drone threats are becoming a new regional reality, making it essential to strengthen civilian-military cooperation and public preparedness. The importance of coordinated state action and clear public communication during crisis situations was also highlighted.
At the close of the meeting, the participating countries agreed to deepen practical cooperation and to organize joint tabletop exercises in the near future — exercises that could eventually scale up into broader cross-border evacuation drills.