Lithuania has unveiled plans to build a multi-layered defensive barrier along its borders, featuring anti-tank obstacles, drainage ditches, minefields, and other fortifications.
According to the Ministry of Defense, the Baltic nation will establish a three-tier defense system designed to hinder or stop hostile advances in the event of aggression.
“Lithuania is transitioning from isolated counter-mobility measures to a comprehensive three-echelon defense structure — ensuring greater depth, tighter control, and full integration with NATO and the EU at our border,” the ministry stated on X.
A graphic shared by the ministry illustrated a 50-kilometer-long defensive zone.
The first section, extending five kilometers behind border checkpoints, will include anti-tank ditches, obstacles, minefields, fortified strongpoints, and trench systems.
The second layer, spanning 15 kilometers, is set to feature drainage ditches, engineering equipment depots, bridges prepared for demolition, and blocked bridge approaches.
The final tier mirrors this design but incorporates roadside trees prepared for felling, which can slow or obstruct enemy movement in wooded terrain.
Lithuania borders Russia’s Kaliningrad exclave, which stretches about 275 kilometers, and Belarus, with an even longer 679-kilometer frontier.
This initiative follows a July 28 incident when an unidentified drone was reported to have entered Lithuanian airspace.
In response, the Lithuanian armed forces announced plans to strengthen air defenses near the Belarusian border. The move also aligns with the European Union’s sharp condemnation of Belarus’s role in supporting Russia’s war against Ukraine.
