Lithuanian Defense Minister: Russian Army Grouping Previously Deployed In Belarus Is Gone

Vilnius declared that it “will not shudder because of the 'Wagnerites'.”

The presence of Wagner private military company mercenaries in Belarus does not significantly change the security situation for Lithuania. This was announced in an interview with Deutsche Welle by the country's Minister of Defense and National Security Arvydas Anušauskas.

He stressed that Russia significantly changed the security situation when it launched a war against Ukraine.

“The Russian group, which was in Belarus and numbered sixty thousand or more people, ammunition depots, logistics, and so on, is gone. Here is the change. And the fact that mercenaries have appeared, whom we generalize with the name “Wagnerites” ... You know, Lithuania, like other NATO members, has both military and other opportunities to ensure its security, even without the help of its allies,” said the head of the Lithuanian Defense Ministry.

According to Anušauskas, there are now “two to three thousand” Wagner PMC mercenaries in Belarus.

“Two or three thousand. It doesn't really change anything at all. There are 40,000 people in the Armed Forces of Belarus. This can significantly change the situation. For example, if Belarus moves its armed forces to our borders, then NATO will react. But, as I said, we are not going to shudder because of these Wagnerites,” said the Lithuanian Defense Minister.