Russian and Belarusian citizens in Lithuania are to be banned from possessing firearms under new legislation passed by parliament in Vilnius on Thursday.
The new law, which will go into effect from April 1 next year, is aimed at preventing the formation of armed groups opposed to the authorities in the event of unrest in the country, which shares borders with Belarus and the Russian exclave of Kaliningrad.
According to the information presented to parliament, 294 Russian and 46 Belarusian citizens are currently in possession of permits to possess or carry weapons.
Once the law is in force, they will have a year to sell the weapons or hand them in to the police. The permits are to be withdrawn.
Lithuania, a member of the European Union and of NATO, has been a strong supporter of Ukraine since the Russian invasion and sees Russia as a threat to its sovereignty.
