Lithuania mulls multi-billion-dollar purchase of long-range air defense systems – defmin

VILNIUS – Lithuania is considering a purchase of long-range air defense systems, Defense Minister Dovile Sakaliene has said.

“We have plans to evaluate and acquire certain long-range air defense systems in the medium to long term,” she told the TV3 news broadcast on Thursday.

“We cannot disclose the details of a medium- and long-term acquisition at the moment, but yes – Lithuania is also doing a detailed analysis and we are assessing and will have certain plans for long-range defense,” the minister added.

According to the news broadcast, the medium and long term would mean that Lithuania could acquire and receive such systems within a decade, but the most suitable systems still need to be chosen after analysis.

The minister hopes that such a purchase, which could cost Lithuania up to several billion euros, will not raise additional questions about defense funding.

According to Sakaliene, the project would most likely be implemented by the next government, but planning needs to start now.

Lithuania has been strengthening its defense capabilities in the wake of the deteriorating geopolitical situation. The State Defense Council has agreed to allocate around 12 billion euros to national defense over the next five years until 2030, which would raise defense funding to 5-6 percent of GDP.