Meeting with the French Ambassador – Focus on Hybrid Threats and Border Security
Minister of the Interior Vladislavas Kondratovičius met with the French Ambassador to Lithuania, Lucie Stepanyan. During the meeting, they discussed the security situation in the region, emerging hybrid threats, and bilateral cooperation.
“We are seeing consistent and coordinated pressure from hostile regimes on our region – hybrid threats are becoming increasingly complex. This is why even closer international cooperation and joint solutions are essential at both the national and European Union levels,” said the Minister V. Kondratovičius.
In light of current geopolitical threats, another important issue was highlighted during the meeting: the inclusion of hybrid threats in the regulations governing financial instruments in the field of home affairs. According to the Minister of the Interior, removing hybrid threats from the objectives of the Internal Security Financial Instrument would amount to a denial of reality.
Minister V. Kondratovičius emphasized that Lithuania is not alone on this issue, as a significant number of other EU Member States support the country’s position. Therefore, it is essential to continue discussions at the expert level in order to secure the broadest possible consensus.
During the meeting, issues related to preparations for Lithuania’s Presidency of the Council of the European Union were also discussed.
The main focus was on internal security challenges arising from the ongoing war in Ukraine, the transposition of the European Pact on Migration and Asylum into national law, and relations between Lithuania and Belarus and their impact on border security.
It was noted that since 2021, more than 25,000 attempts to illegally cross the state border have been recorded in Lithuania, and comprehensive legal, diplomatic, operational, and economic measures have been employed to manage this threat.