Weather balloons were spotted in the skies over western regions of Lithuania on the morning of January 31. Such incidents had previously been more frequently observed in eastern Lithuania, Delfi reports.
The outlet drew attention to a video published on Facebook by photographer Marius Čepulis. The footage shows two weather balloons with a suspended box, presumably containing contraband. According to him, the balloons were flying over Šventoji toward Sweden. He estimated that the balloon was at an altitude of about 300 meters.
“Are we trolling the Swedes, or did Belarusian eggs with contraband fly across the whole of Lithuania?” Čepulis joked.
Eyewitnesses also reported seeing similar objects in other areas of western Lithuania — in Skuodas, the Plungė District, and Milašaičiai.
Earlier, due to aerial contraband at the end of January, Vilnius Airport was temporarily closed. Similar incidents were also recorded in Poland and Latvia.
The National Crisis Management Center said there is still no precise data on the origin of the object, but the most likely version remains that it was launched from Belarus.
“Services tracked the movement of this object; it did not pose a threat to civil aviation. Last night, up to 10 markers resembling weather balloons were recorded, which the Alyaksandr Lukashenka regime uses for a hybrid attack on Lithuania. At present, we have no confirmed data that the object spotted over the Baltic Sea arrived with these markers, but this is the most realistic version,” said the center’s representative, Darius Buta.
Palanga Mayor Šarūnas Vaitkus added that on Saturday police received three reports of a weather balloon near Šventoji.
