Lithuania supplies Ukraine with lethal weaponry

Lithuania has supplied about 150 tonnes of ammunition to Ukraine for the first time since 2014, says a spokesman for the country’s Joint Chiefs of Staff.

The unnamed spokesman told Reuters on Saturday that a day earlier Vilnius had handed over to Ukrainian authorities the ammunition cargo, mostly 5.45 caliber cartridges for various modifications of Kalashnikov AK-47 rifle.

Lithuanian Defense Minister Juozas Olekas said, “We are sending a message to Ukraine that it is not alone.”

“Lithuania has consistently helped Ukraine in its fight for territorial integrity and the defense of its values, and we would like to keep helping as much as we can.”

This is the second time Lithuania, a member of NATO and neighbor of Russia, has supplied Ukraine with lethal weaponry reportedly in an attempt to prevent the conflict in eastern Ukraine from spilling over into the Lithuanian territory.

In April 2015, Russia accused Lithuania of violating the international Arms Trade Treaty as well as agreements of the European Union and Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe in supplying Kiev with ammunition, a complaint which was sent to the Lithuanian embassy in Moscow but was strongly rejected by Vilnius.

“We have supplied help to the Ukrainian army in small quantities and openly,” said Lithuanian Foreign Minister Linas Antanas Linkevicius at the time, accusing Moscow of having a hand in the conflict and supplying weaponry to pro-Russians in eastern Ukraine. Moscow strongly denies the allegation.

SS