Lithuania scraps constitutional ban on nuclear weapons

Lithuanian President Gitanas Nauseda said on Thursday that the Baltic nation’s top political leaders agreed to lift the constitutional ban on the domestic deployment of nuclear weapons.

The decision came shortly after lawmakers in Finland, another NATO member that shares a border with Russia. voted lifting its long-standing ban on nuclear weapons.

Speaking to reporters shortly after the decision, Nauseda said that Article 137 of the Lithuanian constitution had become “outdated” and “outdated”. report From public broadcaster LRT.

He added that parliamentary and government leaders were “practically unanimous” in support of repealing the policy rather than changing it, and that it would be “really unfortunate” if Lithuania became NATO’s weak link.

Lithuania had Article 137 expressly prohibited deployment of weapons of mass destruction and establishment of foreign military bases on Lithuanian territory.

“The geopolitical situation is deteriorating. Our constitution was written when the geopolitical conditions were completely different,” Nauseda said. he said. Reuters.

Nauseda said removing the provision means Vilnius can adapt to evolving security conditions in the future. But he added that there were no immediate plans to store nuclear weapons in the country.

Lithuania, which borders Russia’s Kaliningrad region, has been one of Ukraine’s staunchest allies during Russian President Vladimir Putin’s more than four-year conflict with Kiev, providing extensive military equipment and financial support.