21 May 2026

Archived edition

Lithuania

Summary

Lithuania’s Agriculture Ministry said on Wednesday that the European Commission had approved a subsidised loan scheme of up to 100 million euros for farmers and agricultural companies. State lender ILTE will offer loans of up to 2 million euros for as long as 10 years, aimed at greener investment and producers that cannot secure enough market financing.

President Gitanas Nauseda said Wednesday’s air raid alert in the Vilnius region was likely triggered by a military drone that entered from Belarus, flew toward the capital and then disappeared from radar. He said the warning system did function, but the incident exposed gaps in how institutions and civilians respond under air threat, and the Lithuanian military said NATO fighter jets were scrambled. During the alert, retailer Maxima temporarily halted operations at 18 stores.

The Kaunas Regional Court ruling against Gediminas Filipavicius over sexual crimes against two women became final on Thursday after neither side appealed within the deadline. The prison term was added to an earlier 20-year sentence for abducting a girl, and the case also covered unlawful detention and other offences linked to garages in Kaunas. Former army chief Valdemaras Rupsys was found guilty of fraud and fined 20,000 euros.

In technology, Vytenis Buzas said NanoAvionics now builds 30-kilogram-class satellites and is preparing 60-kilogram and 120-kilogram models, with NASA among its customers. Vilnius-based Light Conversion is expanding after a 47.3 million euro project won major-investment status, and a new 13,000 square metre manufacturing and R&D centre is set to lift annual output to 2,700 laser systems. Public attention also turned to the death of a one-year-old Lithuanian girl during a family holiday in Egypt and to reports of acute labour shortages in fields where employers are offering a 1,000 euro monthly pay bonus.

Lithuania’s army chief Raimundas Vaiksnoras said late on Wednesday there was no evidence so far that a drone detected over the country was a provocation. Parts of Lithuania were placed under an air alert for a second straight day, while military officials said security measures had to be balanced with residents’ daily lives.

sources: tv3.lt, vz.lt, delfi.lt, lrytas.lt, lrt.lt, 15min.lt

Prime Minister: €100 million in subsidized loans for struggling farmers

On May 20, the Agriculture Ministry said the European Commission had approved a subsidized-loan scheme worth up to €100 million for farmers and farm companies, with state lender ILTE set to run it. Borrowers will be able to take out as much as €2 million each and repay over up to 10 years. The money is aimed at greener investment and at producers who cannot get enough financing on the market, with lending due to start in the first half of May.

Why it matters

The scheme gives farms a financing channel when cash flow is tight and commercial lenders are reluctant to step in. That can decide whether investment in equipment, storage or greener production gets done this season or is pushed back for another year.

sources:delfi.lt

Technology

First Lithuanian satellite creator V. Buzas: 'Don’t fear starting before you feel fully ready'

Vytenis Buzas told LRT that NanoAvionics now builds 30-kilogram class satellites and is preparing 60-kilogram and 120-kilogram models. He said Lituanica Sat-1 took about a year to 18 months to complete and grew into a company that now counts NASA among its customers. Buzas argued that starting before you feel fully ready matters more than waiting for perfect conditions, and said the next phase is about larger spacecraft and a broader market.

Why it matters

A Lithuanian satellite maker moving into heavier platforms opens more work for engineers, suppliers and research partners. If NanoAvionics makes the jump to 60- and 120-kilogram spacecraft, it will push the country’s space sector into a more demanding market segment.

sources:delfi.lt

Crime

Filipavičius sentenced for sexual violence against women

The Kaunas Regional Court’s verdict in the case of Gediminas Filipavičius became final on May 21, 2026, after neither side appealed within the legal deadline. He was convicted in a closed trial of sexual crimes against two women and was handed prison time on top of an earlier 20-year sentence for abducting a girl. The case also involved allegations that the women were held in garages in Kaunas, with charges including unlawful detention and other offenses, meaning Filipavičius remains behind bars.

Why it matters

The two victims now have a final court ruling in a case heard behind closed doors. It also means Filipavičius remains convicted not only for the kidnapping case that brought a 20-year term, but for crimes against adult women as well, with no further appeal in this case at this stage.

sources:lrt.lt delfi.lt

Politics

President Nausėda: Lithuanian airspace violated possibly by two drones

President Gitanas Nausėda linked Wednesday’s air raid alert in the Vilnius region to a military drone that crossed in from Belarus and moved toward the capital before disappearing from radar. He said the warning system did work, but the episode exposed weak spots in how public institutions and civilians react under air threat. Nausėda said more drone incursions are likely in the near term and called for faster upgrades to anti-drone defences and civil protection.

Why it matters

For residents of the Vilnius region, this means air-raid alerts and shelter procedures are no longer hypothetical. Local authorities and public venues now face pressure to tighten warning systems, shelter access and evacuation routines.

sources:15min.lt

Politics

Parliament will decide on banning ships with nuclear weapons from Lithuania

On May 19, parliament sent President Gitanas Nausėda’s veto on the revamped Klaipėda State Seaport law back for renewed review. The disputed clause would have allowed ships carrying nuclear weapons to enter Lithuanian territory if that did not clash with national security, which the president says would run against the constitution’s blanket ban on weapons of mass destruction. If lawmakers override the veto, the legal change would clear the way for a tighter port-security regime that explicitly carves out a nuclear-weapons exception. The final vote is still ahead.

Why it matters

For port operators and shipping lines, the vote will determine whether heavily protected allied warships can call at Klaipėda and what screening rules would apply on entry. It also tests whether lawmakers choose a narrow security carve-out or stick with the constitution’s stricter ban, a question that could shape future defense and port law.

sources:tv3.lt

Technology

Unique Lithuanian laser technology paves the way to quantum tech

On April 22, 2026, Vilnius-based Light Conversion was granted major-investment status for a 47.3 million euro expansion. The project will add a 13,000 sq m manufacturing and R&D center and lift output to 2,700 laser systems a year. The company’s ultrafast lasers already feed international science and industry projects, including particle accelerators and quantum systems. That makes the expansion part of Lithuania’s wider push to turn its laser and photonics base into a quantum-tech platform.

Why it matters

Demand will come from labs, particle-accelerator teams and quantum-communications developers that need highly precise light sources. A bigger Vilnius plant means more local supply and less dependence on imports in a strategic high-tech chain.

sources:vz.lt

Europe

Summary

Kyiv said today it was ready for negotiations in the coming weeks, even as Volodymyr Zelensky convened an urgent meeting on a response to Russia and Belarus. Zelensky also said Ukrainian long-range strikes had forced Russia to cut oil refining and slow drilling expansion. He said Russia’s budget deficit in the first five months of 2026 was far above plan because of damage to energy infrastructure and weaker export income.

Ukraine’s 15th Artillery Reconnaissance Brigade yesterday released video showing a Russian Buk-M2 air-defence system burning after a strike near the front line. The strike left the launcher and radar module unusable. Zelensky also said Ukraine had struck Russia’s FSB headquarters and killed about 100 Russian troops in one operation. He warned of a new Russian offensive, while military analysts said Russian forces were finalising preparations for an assault on a city.

Berlin agreed yesterday to seek a 40% stake in KNDS ahead of the Franco-German arms maker’s planned June stock market listing. KNDS builds the Leopard 2 tank, and Germany wants parity with France, which is also set to hold 40%. Brussels warned yesterday that EU wind-power expansion remains too slow for 2030 targets because of permitting delays, grid bottlenecks and strained supply chains. Sexually transmitted infections are also rising rapidly across Europe, and an earthquake rattled Naples in southern Italy.

Poland demanded an apology from Israel today after national security minister Itamar Ben Gvir posted a video showing detained Gaza flotilla activists kneeling with their hands bound. Israel began processing hundreds of detained activists for deportation at Ashdod port, and Benjamin Netanyahu ordered them removed as quickly as possible. Estonia said today that a Russian diplomatic note over the Baltic region was a threat to the whole NATO alliance. A French court also found Air France and Airbus guilty over an air disaster that killed 228 people.

Volodymyr Zelenskiy warned late in the evening of possible provocations from Belarus and said Ukrainian intelligence had identified specific threats. Ukraine also said it had destroyed a Russian FSB headquarters in occupied Kherson region, while a Russian attack on Dnipro injured 14 people.

sources: vz.lt, lrytas.lt, lrt.lt, 15min.lt, delfi.lt, tv3.lt

Russian army attacked Dnipro: five people injured

Russian drones hit Dnipro on May 17, leaving three people injured and sparking fires across the city. Regional officials said the strikes targeted urban sites, coming after several days of heavier attacks on the wider Dnipropetrovsk region. Emergency crews assessed damage and put out fires while doctors treated the wounded in hospital.

Why it matters

Civilians in Dnipro face recurring risk as each strike injures people and disrupts normal city life. Every new attack forces hospitals, rescue teams and local authorities to divert resources from routine services to damage control.

sources:15min.lt

Energy

Wind energy in the EU: To meet an ambitious vision, power plants must sprout like mushrooms

The European Commission on May 20 in Brussels set out a fresh assessment of wind power build-out across the bloc. It said the EU needs a much faster pace of new capacity if it is to hit its 2030 clean-energy goals. The report points to slow permitting, grid bottlenecks and strained supply chains as the main brakes on investment. Brussels is now pressing member states to speed up auctions and grid connections this year.

Why it matters

If the build-out stays slow, households and industry will wait longer for cheaper power, and the EU will remain more exposed to imported energy. Delays also raise the risk that planned wind projects in Lithuania and across the region slip further down the queue.

sources:vz.lt

Politics

War in Ukraine. After Ukrainian strikes – powerful effect in Russia

Volodymyr Zelensky said on May 19 that Ukrainian long-range strikes have forced Russia to cut oil refining and slow drilling, hitting state revenues. He linked the pressure to a budget deficit in the first five months of 2026 that he said was far above plan, driven by damage to energy infrastructure and weaker export income. Kyiv wants to keep up strikes on energy and military targets deep inside Russia until the cost of war keeps rising for Moscow.

Why it matters

Russia’s oil income funds the war, so lower refining output and weaker export receipts tighten Moscow’s room to cover its budget gap. For Ukraine, that gives long-range strikes more leverage against the Russian war economy, while Europe faces added risk of fuel price swings and supply disruptions.

sources:lrytas.lt

Economy

Sources: German state seeks to acquire 40% of KNDS weapons maker shares.

On May 20, 2026, Germany's federal government agreed to seek a 40% stake in KNDS, the Franco-German weapons maker preparing for a June stock market listing. KNDS builds the Leopard 2 tank and Berlin wants parity with France, which is also set to hold 40%, according to German officials. The move comes as Europe is rushing to expand defence production and keep strategic control over a sector jammed with new orders.

Why it matters

The stake will help decide who controls one of Europe's key land-arms producers after the listing. That matters for the supply of tanks and munitions to German and French forces, both of which are building orders fast.

sources:15min.lt

Politics

Ukrainian forces destroyed the Russian Buk-M2 air defense system

On May 20, Ukraine’s 15th Artillery Reconnaissance Brigade released video showing a Russian Buk-M2 air defence system burning out after a strike near the front line. The Buk-M2 is one of Moscow’s key medium-range systems, built to protect troops and fixed sites from aircraft, drones and missiles. The footage suggests Ukrainian reconnaissance drones spotted the vehicle first, then guided a follow-on strike that left the launcher and radar module unusable.

Why it matters

Every Buk-M2 taken out creates more room for Ukrainian drones and precision weapons to reach depots, artillery positions and command posts. Russian units near the front then have less cover from air attack and must move in replacement systems that can be hit next.

sources:delfi.lt

Politics

Poland demands Israel’s apology

Poland joined a widening diplomatic backlash on May 21 after Israeli national security minister Itamar Ben Gvir posted a video showing detained Gaza flotilla activists kneeling with their hands bound. Israeli authorities began processing hundreds of activists after intercepting the aid boats at sea and taking them to Ashdod port. Benjamin Netanyahu said the conduct did not reflect Israeli values and ordered the detainees deported as quickly as possible.

Why it matters

Because several flotilla passengers were foreign nationals, the case has moved into consular and diplomatic territory, not just Israeli security policy. The immediate fallout will be decisions on detention conditions, deportations and possible ambassador summons.

sources:delfi.lt

World

Summary

Russia’s central bank cut its gold holdings to 73.9 million ounces by May 1, the lowest level since February 2022. Moscow has sold 900,000 ounces since the start of the year, and Bloomberg estimated the sales may have raised more than $4bn. At the same time, Vladimir Putin left Beijing without the big new Chinese economic backing he wanted and without a final deal on the long-discussed Siberia-to-China gas pipeline.

Donald Trump said yesterday the US was holding off a planned strike on Iran while talks to end the war continue. Benjamin Netanyahu has kept a harder line, insisting Iran must surrender enriched uranium and other nuclear assets. Over the past day, markets have also focused on the Strait of Hormuz because any disruption there would hit global oil and shipping flows. Iran today carried out two more executions linked to the protest cases.

China today accused Washington of using sanctions and courts to pressure Cuba after the US this week filed murder charges against 94-year-old former Cuban president Raul Castro over the 1996 shootdown of two Miami-based planes. Trump this week called Cuba a state sponsor of terrorism, and the aircraft carrier Nimitz has arrived in the Caribbean. The US attorney general also said Washington expects Raul Castro to end up in a US prison.

Lithuania sent air-raid warnings yesterday to residents in Vilnius and several eastern districts after a drone was spotted near the border with Belarus. NATO air-policing jets were scrambled, and similar drone alerts were reported this week in Latvia and Estonia, where one drone was shot down by a NATO aircraft operating from Siauliai. In the United States, three people died after contact with an unidentified substance.

sources: delfi.lt, vz.lt, 15min.lt, lrytas.lt, tv3.lt, lrt.lt

China slow to help Russia – Xi Jinping denies Putin what he wanted

Vladimir Putin spent May 20-21 in Beijing trying to squeeze more help for Russia’s war economy out of Xi Jinping, but walked away without any public announcement of a big new rescue package. The Kremlin brought Gazprom and Rosneft chiefs into the delegation, a sign Moscow wanted energy and finance on the table, yet Beijing kept the message broad: trade, diplomacy and regional stability. The result suggests China still wants leverage over Russia, but is not ready to take the kind of step that could trigger sharper Western retaliation against Chinese banks and firms.

Why it matters

Russia’s budget and energy giants depend on whether Beijing opens wider payment channels and buys more, because that is what keeps hard currency flowing into Moscow. For Europe, the key issue is sanctions enforcement: China can still help Russia skirt restrictions, but it appears unwilling to do so in a way that invites a direct political and financial backlash.

sources:15min.lt

Politics

China: US 'wastes sanctions and the rod of courts' against Cuba

Beijing on May 21 accused Washington of using sanctions and courts to pressure Cuba, after the U.S. this week brought murder charges against 94-year-old former Cuban president Raul Castro over a 1996 incident in which two Miami-based planes were shot down. President Donald Trump this week called Cuba an

Why it matters

For Cubans, the fight adds pressure to an economy already short of power, food and fuel. It also sharpens U.S.-China friction in the Caribbean, where Washington is showing more military and diplomatic muscle.

sources:15min.lt

Economy

Russia rapidly sells gold reserves

Russia’s central bank cut its gold holdings to 73.9 million ounces by May 1, down 900,000 ounces from the start of the year, according to data published on May 20. That is the lowest level since February 2022, when Moscow launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine, and Bloomberg estimated the sales could have raised more than $4bn. The moves suggest the Kremlin is leaning harder on bullion as sanctions, frozen assets and weaker energy receipts squeeze its finances.

Why it matters

For Russia’s budget, the sales reduce a financial cushion just as war spending and sanctions keep biting. They can also feed through to global bullion markets, where extra supply may nudge prices and influence reserve managers’ behaviour.

sources:delfi.lt

Politics

Trump’s shadow in the Senate: Republicans cautiously talk about drone incidents in the Baltic states

On May 20, Lithuania sent air-raid warnings to residents in Vilnius and several eastern districts after a drone was spotted near the border with Belarus. NATO air-policing jets were scrambled, while similar drone alerts were reported this week in Latvia and Estonia, where one drone was shot down by a NATO aircraft operating from Šiauliai. The episode has sharpened pressure on lawmakers and allied governments to harden Baltic air defences, even as officials still try to establish whether the Lithuanian drone landed in the country or left its airspace.

Why it matters

For residents in eastern Lithuania, this means more alerts, more shelter drills and tighter surveillance along the Belarus border. For NATO allies in the region, it is becoming a live test of air defence readiness, with decisions measured in minutes rather than hours.

sources:lrt.lt

Politics

Trump and Netanyahu clashed briefly

On May 19, Donald Trump said the U.S. was holding off on a planned strike on Iran while talks to end the war continued, saying Gulf states had urged him to step back. Netanyahu has kept up pressure, saying the war is not over and that Iran still needs to be stripped of enriched uranium and other nuclear assets. The split leaves a fragile ceasefire in place and keeps the risk of a fresh U.S. intervention alive.

Why it matters

Oil markets and shipping through the Strait of Hormuz hinge on the fact that a strike has been delayed, not ruled out. Any fresh split between Washington and Jerusalem could quickly hit fuel costs, insurance premiums and regional security.

sources:delfi.lt

Politics

Kremlin boss’s visit to Beijing: Putin a partner, but not an ally of China

Vladimir Putin met Xi Jinping in Beijing on May 20, 2026, and said ties with China had reached an unprecedented level. Moscow pressed for clarity on a long-discussed Siberia-to-China gas pipeline, but Beijing has still not signed off on a construction timetable or a final deal. The talks came days after Donald Trump’s trip to China, and they are being watched in Washington and European capitals for signs of how far Beijing is willing to back Russia under sanctions and war pressure.

Why it matters

Europe’s energy market has a direct stake because China remains Russia’s biggest customer for oil and gas, so even partial progress on a new pipeline would help Moscow’s revenues. For Ukraine and its backers, Beijing’s stance helps determine how long the Kremlin can keep funding the war economy.

sources:vz.lt