Lithuania considers activating EU cyber force to help Ukraine after attack

  • 2022-01-17
  • BNS/TBT Staff

VILNIUS – The EU's cyber rapid response team may be deployed to help Ukraine which is facing cyber-attacks, Lithuanian officials said on Monday.

Deputy Defense Minister Margiris Abukevicius and Ukraine's Deputy Defense Minister on Digital Development Oleh Haiduk on Monday discussed the possibility of activating the EU's cyber rapid response team, the Lithuanian Defense Ministry said. 

The Lithuania-led force has been operating since 2019. 

Last week, Ukraine's authorities came under a cyber-attack that Kyiv links to Russia.

"It is important for us to demonstrate solidarity with Ukraine and to provide it with assistance, and the deployment of the cyber rapid response team when needed is one of the objectives of the Lithuanian-led multinational project," Abukevicius said in a press release. 

The multinational cyber-response team is on permanent standby and is ready to deploy as soon as a concrete agreement on such assistance is reached, according to the press release.

Among other tasks, the team of cyber security experts from Lithuania, Poland, the Netherlands, Romania, Croatia and Estonia can be used in a major cyber crisis or to beef up the defense of EU institutions if needed.

The vice-ministers also discussed the possibility of strengthening cooperation through the Regional Cyber Security Centre in Kaunas, which was launched last summer and brings together cyber-security experts from Lithuania, the US, Georgia and Ukraine, the Lithuanian ministry said.