LRT — broadcast
20261012 193000 UTC
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[00:00:00] use the Belarusian border for training. The first line of
[00:00:03] air defense was visited by LRT journalist Augustinas Šulija and
[00:00:07] cameraman Vaidas Greičiūnas.
[00:00:10] Long considered a stylistic Ukrainian front, the northern border of the country
[00:00:14] has recently been attracting more attention. This bridge connecting Belarus
[00:00:18] and Ukraine was blown up at the very beginning of the Russian
[00:00:22] if the situation invasion. However, recently, Ukrainian
[00:00:25] politicians have been warning more and more often that Russia could once again use
[00:00:29] Belarusian territory and launch a new offensive in the direction of
[00:00:33] Kyiv. Ukrainians are taking these warnings
[00:00:36] seriously. The entire border with Belarus is being heavily
[00:00:40] fortified. Not only against weapons that were used in
[00:00:43] 2022, but also against the growing
[00:00:46] drone threat. We plan to install
[00:00:49] nets over roads, currently they are installed over our stationary
[00:00:53] posts. Now the biggest focus is on the border with
[00:00:57] some higher education institutions, well Russia, but when the work there is finished, it will move here.
[00:01:00] Five kilometers from here, we meet with the local
[00:01:03] community elder, according to her, new fortifications along the border
[00:01:07] have recently been completed, making people here feel
[00:01:10] calmer, but new Russian reactive Shaheds constantly fly
[00:01:14] over the town towards Kyiv and other cities. Just
[00:01:18] today, an air alert was declared from three in the morning,
[00:01:21] the situation is calmer since you arrived, but for the last three days, drones
[00:01:25] have been flying constantly day and night. For continuous
[00:01:28] air attacks, Russia, according to experts, has created an entire
[00:01:31] corridor of Shahed drone launch bases and communication systems near the borders of Belarus
[00:01:35] and Ukraine. Having crossed the Ukrainian border near
[00:01:38] the so-called "three sisters" junction. Russian drones,
[00:01:42] towards Kyiv and other cities, fly precisely along the forested
[00:01:45] Belarusian border, and sometimes even through Belarusian
[00:01:49] territory itself, until they reach the Dnieper. From here,
[00:01:52] the road to Kyiv and Western Ukraine is the shortest.
[00:01:55] Radio signal interception. This mobile defense team
[00:01:59] is one.
[00:02:04] when reactive drones appeared, they succeeded
[00:02:06] perfectly,
[00:02:09] but catching the faster and higher-flying reactive drones that appeared
[00:02:13] at the end of summer with existing weapons became almost
[00:02:16] impossible, training, aiming,
[00:02:19] we are learning, trying to use existing weaponry against reactive
[00:02:22] drones, sometimes we succeed in shooting them down, it's
[00:02:26] difficult, but we reinstalled the equipment so that
[00:02:29] it aims at the target faster, it helps,
[00:02:32] although the results are
[00:02:33] limited.
[00:02:38] Russian drones use Belarusian communication transponders, Minsk
[00:02:41] was not the first time. In June, after Zelensky threatened
[00:02:45] strikes, the situation, according to soldiers,
[00:02:47] improved.
[00:02:53] After Zelensky's words, the number of drones significantly decreased. These were
[00:02:57] old Shaheds, Geran 2, using
[00:03:00] their transponders, they flew in masses, sometimes
[00:03:03] we had to spend two or three days in the fields, we couldn't
[00:03:07] leave.
[00:03:10] However, by the end of summer, not only drones flying at jet speed returned,
[00:03:13] but also accusations against Belarus. According to experts,
[00:03:16] the fact that Russia uses communication transmission systems in Belarus
[00:03:20] is proven by the trajectory of new drones and available technical
[00:03:24] information about these drones. Communication
[00:03:27] relay towers allow drones to maneuver more easily, change
[00:03:31] targets while flying, and increasingly hunt the drone
[00:03:34] hunters themselves.
[00:03:37] The first drone flies over, the team tries to shoot it down, the second drone
[00:03:41] flying behind it is already flying directly at them,
[00:03:45] the first attracts attention, the second strikes, there have already been
[00:03:48] tragic cases when our cars were
[00:03:51] hit.
[00:03:53] From Belarus to the Russian border, the signs of a drone corridor
[00:03:59] social tensions, well are increasing. Near the three-border checkpoint in
[00:04:01] Horodnya, reactive drones not only fly over the city daily,
[00:04:05] but also attack gas stations, energy infrastructure, and often
[00:04:09] hit residents' homes, according to Sveta, who has two children, the battle in the sky is
[00:04:13] and and this way, well, increasingly dangerous, recently a drone hit a neighbor's house.
[00:04:17] We
[00:04:19] cannot sleep, either I or my husband is on watch while the children try
[00:04:23] to fall asleep, but when we start hearing drones and everything else, we run
[00:04:26] to the neighbor's shelter, the school basement, or hide.
[00:04:32] We witnessed the intense air battle in Northern Ukraine ourselves
[00:04:35] after visiting this air defense group, also on duty in the path of Russian
[00:04:39] drones. Upon arrival, the radar shows an approaching reactive
[00:04:42] drone.
[00:04:45] In the sky, a roar resembling a high-flying airplane can be heard.
[00:04:48] Soldiers quickly aim their only effective weapon against reactive drones,
[00:04:52] a handheld anti-aircraft missile launcher. However,
[00:04:55] just as suddenly as the drone engine's
[00:04:58] there can be isolated attempts roar began, it suddenly falls silent, after performing a maneuver, the drone flies off in another
[00:05:01] direction. According
[00:05:05] to radar data, its flight altitude was more than
[00:05:08] 10.50 m, if you want to
[00:05:11] imagine that. Think of a civilian airplane flying
[00:05:15] in the sky, they fly at 80 km
[00:05:18] altitude, does it look small from the ground? Now
[00:05:22] imagine a Shahed flying at such an altitude, it's
[00:05:25] almost impossible to see it at all. While
[00:05:29] air-to-ground missiles and Ukrainian fighter jets are the only effective
[00:05:32] weapons against reactive drones, soldiers say that drones flying along
[00:05:36] the Belarusian border are not accidental.
[00:05:39] Their flight path is 4.3 to 2
[00:05:42] km from the border, everything is planned this way
[00:05:45] not by chance, because essentially I cannot shoot it down there, well
[00:05:49] I could, but then it would fall in Belarusian territory,
[00:05:53] you understand, it could lead to an international conflict and
[00:05:56] everything else, every drone that slips through the first air defense line
[00:06:00] is a deadly danger in cities like Kyiv,
[00:06:03] as Ukraine rushes to improve interceptor drones and other weapons to
[00:06:07] shoot down active drones, city attacks do not cease for a single
[00:06:11] day, the electricity supply restrictions that began this week, nets enveloping
[00:06:15] bridges and burning communication and information centers leave
[00:06:18] little doubt about the painful consequences of Russia's advantage
[00:06:22] in the duel over Ukrainian
[00:06:23] skies.
[00:06:27] As fuel prices continue to rise, the president proposes to introduce daily
[00:06:30] price caps, but this is criticized by both business and
[00:06:34] politicians. They say that if caps are introduced, fuel prices could rise
[00:06:37] even further. The Budget and Finance Committee asks the presidency to submit
[00:06:41] a new version of the fuel price cap mechanism.
[00:06:44] The coalition council also discussed the issue of excise duty reduction,
[00:06:48] but the prime minister emphasizes that such a measure is too
[00:06:51] expensive for the state, so the ruling party only agrees on concessions for train
[00:06:55] and bus tickets and to publish fuel
[00:06:58] prices in real time. Parking lots are full of cars,
[00:07:02] residents say fuel is expensive, but they still have to drive, there is
[00:07:06] no other choice. We still have to drive, whether we want to or not, well
[00:07:09] there is some clear limit, probably 5€.
[00:07:12] that's not normal, well very expensive, very, especially for
[00:07:15] seniors who don't work now, it's really
[00:07:19] very expensive, since it's a company car and I don't
[00:07:23] pay from my own pocket, so I don't really feel it,
[00:07:26] but if I had to, but if I had to pay from myself, then yes, I would calculate very carefully and think
[00:07:29] how much I drive, where I drive, and and and whether I always need
[00:07:33] to drive there by car, where it can be reached perhaps by other means, this is not
[00:07:37] the worst option, let's see what's happening, it's the same throughout
[00:07:40] Europe, well, we still need to drive to work, for work
[00:07:44] matters, but, for example, gasoline prices here
[00:07:48] are really high, I was in Latvia last week,
[00:07:51] it's 20 cents cheaper than here.
[00:07:55] President Gitanas Nausėda proposes to introduce daily fuel price
[00:07:58] caps, this would mean that the Minister of Energy, according to a special formula,
[00:08:02] would set the maximum price for gasoline and diesel for each
[00:08:05] day, gas stations selling fuel would not be able
[00:08:08] to exceed it. The president is always in favor of
[00:08:12] reducing indirect taxes for people, so that the benefits go to them, not remain in the production chain,
[00:08:16] this law is about that. However, the project receives criticism from both business
[00:08:19] and politicians. If prices are regulated, it will lead to higher
[00:08:23] fuel prices for consumers, including businesses and all other
[00:08:27] drivers, all residents. Gas stations are not kiosks at a city
[00:08:30] fair, the president's proposed mechanism would only increase uncertainty
[00:08:34] in the market. The more uncertainty there is about future
[00:08:37] prices, the greater the risk, and risk, as always
[00:08:40] in economics, has a certain price. In other words, if there are fuel
[00:08:44] price caps, gas stations will know less what
[00:08:48] price they can work with tomorrow, in a week, and so on, this will increase the price and
[00:08:51] then, when fuel caps allow it, gas stations will
[00:08:55] simply add an additional price component, others emphasize that not
[00:08:58] only would prices not decrease, but there could also be a fuel shortage. Free market
[00:09:02] we are, not the Soviet Union, so in my
[00:09:05] opinion, excellent examples, we all remember what happened in those
[00:09:09] times when prices were limited, there were empty shelves.
[00:09:12] "so we risk, at the worst time,
[00:09:16] having empty fuel shelves. The budget and finance
[00:09:20] committee asks the presidency to submit a new fuel price
[00:09:23] cap mechanism variant. Healthy Belgium, Luxembourg, Germany plans
[00:09:27] to introduce it, Poland introduces it, this corresponds to all international practice, all market
[00:09:30] laws, and we believe that the law will continue to be, perhaps somewhat adjusted
[00:09:34] and move forward. The meaning of such a law in general is small, because it seems
[00:09:37] that the price could decrease by probably
[00:09:41] a maximum of one cent. And it could even increase by one cent, so
[00:09:44] the question is whether it's even worth creating such a law, creating a
[00:09:48] mechanism, because then human resources are also needed to
[00:09:51] administer this entire new
[00:09:53] mechanism, which means that there are costs and state budgets, and in the
[00:09:57] meantime, the benefit is very, very questionable or even
[00:10:00] non-existent, an additional burden on the budget for both this year
[00:10:03] and next would be a significant problem, planning the 27th budget
[00:10:07] already foresees that the deficit will exceed 3%. The budget
[00:10:11] is... cracking, the next year's
[00:10:14] budget is difficult to balance, for now I see that, even
[00:10:18] without seeing the numbers, I know that it will be
[00:10:21] difficult to balance. Some politicians
[00:10:24] in the ruling position also say that it is necessary
[00:10:27] to review the excise policy, the leader of the Democrats, Virginijus
[00:10:30] Sinkevičius, emphasized that a temporary reduction of excise duty is the only
[00:10:34] way to quickly control the rise in fuel prices. We can talk about
[00:10:37] some other measures, in the medium
[00:10:40] term, in the long term, behavioral
[00:10:43] changes, but for today,
[00:10:47] remains as it is, and those prices
[00:10:50] are in the so-called red zone according to
[00:10:53] the government's adopted decisions, we still
[00:10:57] need to have an automatic mechanism when excise duty is temporarily
[00:11:00] reduced. Latvia reduced excise duty on both gasoline
[00:11:04] and diesel from the beginning of October, which reduced the price of a liter of fuel by about
[00:11:07] eight cents, but the prime minister emphasized that reducing fuel excise duty
[00:11:11] is not so simple for Lithuania. Next year's excise duty increase is linked to
[00:11:15] commitments to the European Union and planned as early as
[00:11:18] 2024. During a crisis, even many countries think about their
[00:11:22] consumers and about business, and first of all,
[00:11:25] if some provisions contradict European Union
[00:11:29] law, they first make certain concessions at the national
[00:11:33] level, and then go and negotiate with the European Commission, if
[00:11:36] political decisions are not made at the political level, then
[00:11:40] it is impossible to expect benefits, and decisions on excise duty are unlikely
[00:11:44] to be made soon. The
[00:11:46] prime minister says that reducing excise duties
[00:11:50] is too expensive for the state and socially unfair.
[00:11:54] Drivers are not necessarily
[00:11:56] of the same financial capacity, it can be a
[00:12:00] pensioner for whom traveling
[00:12:03] on November 1st to the cemetery, his
[00:12:06] income from his pension is modest, but
[00:12:10] it can also be a working person or a business person, for whom
[00:12:14] probably a 10 cent fuel price reduction is not a significant measure,
[00:12:18] but the coalition partners say that the excise duty issue will have to
[00:12:21] be revisited, if the situation worsens, then we will simply
[00:12:25] have to return to it, there will be
[00:12:28] no other choice, it seems the government is now
[00:12:31] evaluating it as a situation that
[00:12:35] can be dealt with with more cosmetic measures.
[00:12:39] The ruling party agreed on concessions for
[00:12:42] train and intercity bus tickets, this would cost the state budget
[00:12:46] about 6 million euros per month, according to the prime minister,
[00:12:50] similar concessions for public transport in cities could
[00:12:53] also be considered by municipalities. It was also agreed to publish fuel prices
[00:12:56] in real time.
[00:13:00] Guarding the border with Kaliningrad has been assisted by 100 soldiers
[00:13:04] since this week. Officials say the situation at the border is currently
[00:13:08] calm. One of the reasons for involving soldiers is the possible
[00:13:11] risk of Russian mobilization, due to which Russian citizens may try
[00:13:14] to flee to Lithuania. Minister of Interior Martynas
[00:13:18] Katelynas says that it would be necessary to control Russian citizens
[00:13:21] transiting through Lithuania more. The minister also stated
[00:13:25] that it would be necessary to control incoming migrants more,
[00:13:28] so migration policy will be reviewed. We spoke with
[00:13:32] Minister of Interior Martynas Katelynas earlier about potential
[00:13:35] threats and plans to tighten
[00:13:37] migration. Minister, this week
[00:13:41] it was announced that the army is being called upon to protect the border
[00:13:45] with Kaliningrad, and you have said many times that this is all prevention
[00:13:48] and the threat level has not increased, but still,
[00:13:51] what changed that such a step was needed? Well, we
[00:13:55] evaluate the entirety of the available facts
[00:13:58] about Russia after the so-called
[00:14:01] presidential elections that took place
[00:14:04] at the end of the month,
[00:14:07] essentially undertaking mobilization, well
[00:14:10] we see that the scale of this mobilization can be
[00:14:13] significant, so we consider the fact that some of
[00:14:17] those mobilized may be in Kaliningrad, others may be
[00:14:20] brought to training grounds, we certainly
[00:14:23] understand the threat that... there is a possibility that
[00:14:27] those mobilized may try to seek asylum, try to illegally
[00:14:30] enter Lithuania, fleeing mobilization,
[00:14:34] so this measure is necessary to strengthen border
[00:14:37] security, and at the same time, taking into account the fact that
[00:14:41] happened this week in Latvia regarding
[00:14:44] the migrant attack, when masked individuals appeared, whether they were
[00:14:48] migrant smugglers or perhaps Belarusian special services, we don't
[00:14:51] know, well the danger at the border is
[00:14:55] increased due to hybrid threats and instrumentalized migration, so all those
[00:14:59] facts led to me appealing to the Minister of National Defense regarding the deployment
[00:15:03] of troops for border patrolling.
[00:15:06] Speaking of mobilization, is it more
[00:15:09] considered that these could be some isolated incidents,
[00:15:12] when individuals try to cross in some way, or again, some kind
[00:15:16] of hybrid attacks? Well, there can be various scenarios, and we
[00:15:19] are preparing for all of them, indeed
[00:15:23] to enter Lithuania and seek asylum, there can be
[00:15:27] several individuals, well we certainly would not want
[00:15:30] to see a large-scale attempt to enter the
[00:15:34] territory of the Republic of Lithuania, therefore these preventive measures
[00:15:37] are being implemented to ensure our state's security. But have
[00:15:41] officials perhaps reported any unusual
[00:15:45] activities at the border at this time? Not at this time, the situation is calm, which is why I call
[00:15:49] this, shall we say, request to the Minister
[00:15:52] of National Defense a preventive measure. Returning
[00:15:55] to the incident in Latvia, can
[00:15:58] it be said that this is a new
[00:16:01] stage of escalation that has not happened before? Well,
[00:16:05] evaluating all the facts from the first two years of the migration crisis,
[00:16:08] when we saw thousands of people trying
[00:16:11] to force their way into Lithuania, when we still did not have a physical barrier or surveillance
[00:16:15] systems, in fact, over that five-year
[00:16:18] period, instrumentalized migration had somewhat
[00:16:21] subsided. This year, Latvia faced very strong
[00:16:24] instrumentalization and large numbers of migrants, as a result,
[00:16:28] we had the consequences of secondary migration, which we are
[00:16:31] quite successfully dealing with, the numbers have indeed decreased
[00:16:33] tenfold, but all these
[00:16:37] events, and this week's incident
[00:16:41] involving 40-some migrants who were deterred
[00:16:44] at our border, that incident in Latvia, well, it shows
[00:16:48] that migrants before the cold season, when
[00:16:51] attempts to cross the border usually calm down due to
[00:16:55] climatic conditions, because migrants really don't want to spend
[00:16:59] a long time in the forest when the temperature is below zero, so there is always that
[00:17:02] escalation when attempts are made to enter the territory of the European Union,
[00:17:06] and indeed. when it is simply migrants trying to enter,
[00:17:10] we have faced that and we know how to deal with it, well that incident in Latvia
[00:17:14] shows what, that there is no fear anymore to
[00:17:17] threaten both border guards and the military
[00:17:21] officers assisting them, well it
[00:17:24] truly shows that we must prepare for escalations
[00:17:28] of various levels, because the regime that
[00:17:31] uses migrants and tries to pressure
[00:17:35] the Baltic States and Poland to achieve its political goals,
[00:17:38] well they can come up with various measures, as we
[00:17:42] saw this year, well in Lithuania with tunnels, this is a completely new
[00:17:46] method, as I say, well we had, we didn't have a physical barrier, so
[00:17:49] there were simply attempts to cross our border simply
[00:17:53] on foot, we built a physical barrier, there were
[00:17:57] attempts to climb over it, well we fought
[00:18:00] that too, by repelling those attempts to cross the border
[00:18:03] illegally, well then the only way left was to dig from below, we are
[00:18:07] fighting that too, we are blocking those tunnels, well
[00:18:10] then if there are some counter-measures, there
[00:18:13] will be a desire to continue those attempts
[00:18:16] to cross the border illegally, well new methods will be devised,
[00:18:20] we are preparing for that, we are looking at what we can do against those
[00:18:23] attempts, well and I believe that we are ready.
[00:18:26] The number of illegal immigrants in Lithuania has recently
[00:18:30] decreased, but also recently you have been talking a lot about
[00:18:34] the need for a change in Lithuania's migration policy in general.
[00:18:37] And you always said this with the understanding that this policy would be
[00:18:41] tightened, can you now say more about what is planned
[00:18:44] to be done? Well, that policy regarding legal and illegal
[00:18:48] migration used to be very distinct, with the main
[00:18:51] focus on illegal migration, that was the case throughout Europe,
[00:18:54] now, participating in discussions with the Ministers of Interior
[00:18:57] of European Union member states, when talking about migration,
[00:19:00] legal migration is also emphasized, how it can be restricted,
[00:19:04] what methods can be used for returning illegal migrants.
[00:19:07] Regarding migrants for whom a decision has been made, who had
[00:19:11] status to be in the European Union, but it was
[00:19:14] revoked and they must be returned to their home countries, it is now being discussed more strictly
[00:19:18] that these returns must be accelerated, and
[00:19:21] speaking of Lithuania regarding legal migration, in principle, what we have seen
[00:19:24] over the past four years is that the number of migrants has rapidly increased
[00:19:28] precisely because of this quota migration, when people come to our country from various
[00:19:32] countries to work, but this causes
[00:19:36] and, let's say, economic tensions, because we cannot
[00:19:39] build our state's economy and development on the basis that
[00:19:43] businesses will earn profits only from cheap labor,
[00:19:46] this way we also eliminate our citizens from the labor market
[00:19:51] we transfer costs to the state, because
[00:19:54] we see that integration and other things, well must fall under state supervision, and
[00:19:58] business only takes the benefit, so I believe that these restrictions must be
[00:20:01] measured, because in the short term, we really need that cheap labor
[00:20:05] force where we truly don't have our own citizens, but in principle, that
[00:20:09] quota system doesn't work, because I have already
[00:20:12] received data, simply no one ever asked for such data about migrants
[00:20:16] who arrive under quotas, whether they actually
[00:20:20] all work, if they don't work and the temporary residence permit
[00:20:24] is revoked, whether they leave, yes, we have problems where we
[00:20:26] don't know if those migrants actually leave, so I say that system
[00:20:30] doesn't work, I suggested a new system to the prime minister, the prime minister instructed
[00:20:34] to update the activities of the migration commission and within the framework of that commission... well
[00:20:37] we hope to propose a model that
[00:20:40] would change the current one, I hope so, because I am tasked with coordinating
[00:20:44] the work of that commission, I will present
[00:20:47] that model to the updated composition of the commission when it meets
[00:20:50] in the near future. But you mostly
[00:20:53] talk, you could say, almost exclusively about quotas, but under
[00:20:57] quotas, about 25,000 foreigners arrived this year,
[00:21:00] however, when talking about some problems, people often
[00:21:04] talk about drivers, about couriers who often arrive not even
[00:21:08] under that quota, but through other channels, would
[00:21:11] the discussion about new migration policy be broader, if so,
[00:21:15] about what, only about quotas? Yes, it would
[00:21:18] be broader, because in fact... what we see is that there is a significant
[00:21:22] number, according to available statistics, of people
[00:21:25] who arrive on the basis of studies, but at the same time
[00:21:28] use the opportunity to work through individual activity, they
[00:21:31] are indeed, well, the basis for studies is just a pretext
[00:21:35] for them to come to Lithuania, in reality they work much more, higher education
[00:21:39] institutions don't even physically see them, well and that control is
[00:21:42] insufficient, I think that, well, that path must end, when
[00:21:47] profit from it, but in Lithuania, that picture
[00:21:51] is forming that, well, there are more migrants than is actually
[00:21:54] declared, and when, well, you add
[00:21:58] up all those numbers, not only quota-based, but also study-based and other
[00:22:01] other bases on which immigrants are in Lithuania, well and we get
[00:22:05] those few thousands who raise questions for our society, so also
[00:22:09] on the basis of studies, you will probably suggest that it be
[00:22:12] stricter, I think that it must be, well, third-country citizens
[00:22:16] arriving on the basis of studies must arrive to study, not
[00:22:20] to work and simply use studies as a reason
[00:22:23] for coming, in reality it is only a reason, not
[00:22:27] a principle by which they are here, so you will not allow them, for example,
[00:22:30] to engage in individual activity, this is one of the options, because we see that if
[00:22:34] we allow 20 hours of activity, then they engage in 40 and
[00:22:38] 60 and so on and there is no control to check
[00:22:42] how much that activity is engaged in, whether those
[00:22:46] lectures are actually attended, whether exams are taken, or whether entire
[00:22:50] study programs are simply filled with migrants who do
[00:22:53] not show up for lectures.
[00:22:58] It would seem that the countries of the European Union and NATO need the greatest consolidation
[00:23:02] right now in the face of the growing threat from the East,
[00:23:05] although the societies of Western allies are most torn by social
[00:23:09] problems. In France, due to overcrowded classrooms, poor condition
[00:23:13] of school buildings and inequality in the education sector,
[00:23:16] protesting students managed to ignite a national
[00:23:20] movement, but debt-ridden France, with a large budget
[00:23:23] deficit, does not have many ways to solve
[00:23:26] an entrenched problem without creating new ones, when
[00:23:30] the unrest in the streets is fueled not only by gangs of vandals, but also by
[00:23:33] far-left politicians
[00:23:37] who want to gain political dividends. The student movement once
[00:23:41] changed history, when the president, the father of the 15th Republic,
[00:23:44] himself fled his country for a short time,
[00:23:47] fearing that the situation was becoming uncontrollable.
[00:23:52] People wanted to control their lives, so they took to the streets and
[00:23:55] factories, a parallel that
[00:23:59] you can't confuse. As in
[00:24:02] '68,
[00:24:05] so today, what started as an ordinary demonstration due to poor
[00:24:08] conditions in one of Paris's suburban schools, the protest
[00:24:12] grew into a national
[00:24:15] movement within a couple of weeks. It's cold in the classrooms in winter, a third of
[00:24:18] the teachers are not replaced. In our school, and it's not even among
[00:24:22] the worst, two teachers are missing this year. We want the government
[00:24:25] to listen and take steps so that we can build
[00:24:28] the future.
[00:24:31] To express support for the students, their parents and teachers were invited,
[00:24:34] with a critical mass forming in one city after another, one after
[00:24:38] another, educational institutions were also blocked. At the beginning of October,
[00:24:42] there were more than 160 of them throughout France,
[00:24:46] after a series of protests by fishermen and transporters
[00:24:50] due to high fuel prices, the fragile government of Sebastien Lecornu
[00:24:54] will find it most difficult to quell the anger of massively protesting
[00:24:57] students.
[00:24:59] They saw wars, climate change, sometimes
[00:25:02] watched how hard their parents and loved ones struggled, yet we ask
[00:25:05] you to choose a path and look to the future decisively, to restore trust,
[00:25:09] that is the responsibility of the government and all political parties.
[00:25:13] The usual solution would be to increase
[00:25:16] spending on education. Previously, these were cut in other
[00:25:20] areas, but the reality is that there is nothing left to cut
[00:25:23] without major consequences,
[00:25:26] saving on pensions, healthcare and services
[00:25:29] would probably cause even greater anger among other
[00:25:33] social groups, the government
[00:25:36] can borrow more, but servicing the national debt
[00:25:39] is becoming more and more expensive, and the debt that could reach
[00:25:42] 120% of GDP next year
[00:25:46] is approaching the level of Greece and Italy.
[00:25:50] Observers fear that such a vicious cycle will eventually
[00:25:54] deter investors and this will cause even
[00:25:58] greater problems in the future, although the French Minister of Finance
[00:26:01] reassures. Let me emphasize, France
[00:26:05] remains a very reliable debtor, our account
[00:26:08] is balanced, our strengths in energy, technology and finance
[00:26:11] are widely recognized. So for now, the government
[00:26:15] is only resolving the situation with short-term
[00:26:19] solutions, saying it has found specialists who can at least partially
[00:26:22] fill the missing teaching positions
[00:26:25] in schools. I asked to find, as we call it in jargon,
[00:26:29] a reserve of teachers, so teachers who until now have no.
[00:26:34] But the problem also has another side: clashes with the police have become
[00:26:38] violently harsh in some places, hundreds of students and
[00:26:41] officers have been injured, 7,000 young people have been arrested
[00:26:45] in a couple of weeks, most of them
[00:26:47] minors.
[00:26:49] During one clash, a police sound grenade picked up from the ground
[00:26:53] tore off a student's hand. Some of the
[00:26:56] protesters accuse the law enforcement agencies of using excessive
[00:27:00] force, but others claim
[00:27:03] with their own eyes that the chaos is fueled by gangs of vandals joining the
[00:27:06] rallies. There are young people, even from our
[00:27:10] school and even from our district, coming with fireworks and
[00:27:14] explosions. We don't want that, we want to protest for our rights and
[00:27:17] future. Politicians from the far-left
[00:27:21] party "La France Insoumise" (Unbowed France) are accused of
[00:27:24] inciting unrest, its representatives were filmed
[00:27:27] gathering near schools, confronting the
[00:27:30] police. At one rally, their leader Jean-Luc
[00:27:34] Mélenchon also appeared, who nominated himself as a candidate
[00:27:37] in next year's presidential elections. This is
[00:27:41] the most powerful youth movement we have seen in 50
[00:27:44] years, and no one can tell you that you are wrong, because you are
[00:27:48] right. So the ruling party accuses the far
[00:27:51] left of opportunism. Hiding behind concern for students,
[00:27:55] they exploit the national crisis for narrow political
[00:27:59] interests and fuel radical gangs.
[00:28:03] "This is an obvious campaign to destroy the public education
[00:28:06] sector, but as unrest continues and
[00:28:10] animosity grows before the upcoming elections, all politicians
[00:28:14] are silent, the most important one, Emmanuel
[00:28:16] Macron.
[00:28:19] As his last term ends and such a
[00:28:22] situation arises, he probably has few political
[00:28:25] calculations, but one way or another, unpopular decisions
[00:28:29] will have to be taken by someone sooner or later."
[00:28:35] Meanwhile, accumulated social problems in Spain
[00:28:38] could lead to serious political changes. If it happened that
[00:28:42] after the early elections in November, Pedro Sánchez's progressive
[00:28:46] minority coalition would be replaced by center and far-right
[00:28:49] forces. This is exactly the probability predicted by polls,
[00:28:53] but the prime minister hopes that the upcoming elections will turn into
[00:28:56] a referendum on who will solve the most important housing
[00:28:59] problem, and the public's anger over housing prices..." support
[00:29:03] for his socialist party. The gamble is risky and reminds
[00:29:06] of the summer before last, when French President Emmanuel
[00:29:10] Macron also decided to go all-in. He called early
[00:29:13] elections, but did not win them and further deepened the turmoil
[00:29:17] in the country. How it will end in Spain is still
[00:29:20] unclear. What is clear is that the housing crisis continues
[00:29:23] to leave no one indifferent. Protests in Madrid, Valencia,
[00:29:27] Barcelona and elsewhere are not dispersing. The disappointment of their
[00:29:30] participants is deepened by the news that the 87-year-old
[00:29:33] senior, Maricarmen Abascal, who was unable to pay her rent
[00:29:37] and was forcibly evicted from her home in Madrid, becoming a symbol of the protests,
[00:29:39] died this week.
[00:29:51] forced the whole world to remember the recently experienced
[00:29:54] pandemic. Next year, Lithuania will allocate almost
[00:29:58] the same amount of money for defense as this year. What will we invest in?
[00:30:02] Dilemma over the death penalty in the United States.
[00:30:19] stated that next year, Lithuania will continue to allocate almost the same amount of money from the budget
[00:30:22] for defense as this year. The percentage of GDP
[00:30:25] will slightly decrease, but will remain slightly more than
[00:30:29] 5%. Funds for defense continue to cover not only
[00:30:32] network or air defense acquisitions, but also
[00:30:35] infrastructure development. This week it became clear that Lithuania
[00:30:39] is ready if the Americans want to establish
[00:30:42] a base.
[00:30:44] Lithuania invited the United States to establish a permanent American base
[00:30:48] in Lithuania. Would you consider that?
[00:30:51] Well, they're my friends, great people, so we'll definitely
[00:30:54] consider it. They're great people. Lithuania. I know
[00:30:57] so many people in this country.