Military inspectors of the Russian Federation will verify Lithuania's military units of their choice
On July 22-23 the team of arms control inspectors of the Russian Federation will carry out an inspection in a selected military area in Lithuania under the provisions of the OSCE Vienna Document 2011.
Russian arms control inspectors will visit Lithuania's Gaižiūnai and Kazlų Rūda Training Areas, Mechanised Infantry Brigade Iron Wolf and the Lithuanian Air Force Base, and meet with unit commanders. In line with corresponding provisions of the Vienna Document 2011 the inspectors will also be given an opportunity to flight over a chosen area by a helicopter provided by the Lithuanian Force to ascertain that there are no ongoing military activities requiring prior notification.
In its turn, the Russian Federation will have to report to OSCE countries on the compliance with provisions concerning arms control of international treaties witnessed in Lithuania.
The Vienna Document 2011 allows every OSCE member country to verify if another member of the organisation does not carry out any notifiable military activities without prior notification to OSCE countries and does not have military capabilities that require declaration.
The Vienna Document 2011 commits the signatory countries to conduct annual information exchange on their manpower, planned capability development and defence budgets on an annual basis, and to notify other OSCE countries in advance of scheduled military activities. The states also commit to accept a designated number of inspections and evaluation visits by other member states' military inspectors in military units in their territories.
The previous visit of Russian arms control experts in Lithuania took place in 2013.
Russian and Belorussian military representatives will carry out observation flight over the territory of Lithuania
On July 22 a team of Russian and Belorussian observers arriving by an AN-30 B of the Russian Federation will use the Šiauliai Air Base as the point of entry. The flight representatives will carry out an observation flight under the Treaty on Open Skies over the territory of Lithuania on July 23 or 24 (depending on weather conditions).
The flight route based on a mission planned agreed upon with Lithuania in advance will start at the Lithuanian Air Force Base in Šiauliai. Members of the Lithuanian Air Force will monitor the observation throughout the mission and see to the course of the flight and compliance with the mission plan.
The observers are expected to depart from Lithuania in July 25. The same team of observers are carrying out an observation flight over the territory of Latvia this week too.
Lithuania joined the Treaty on Open Skies in 2005 and has been sending personnel to carry out such observation flights in foreign countries. Lithuanian officers have been taking part in observation flights alongside NATO allies over the Russian Federation since 2007. All the OSCE state parties to the Treaty on Open Skies are obliged to accept and allowed to carry out such flights by or in any other state party.
The Treaty on Open Skies was endorsed on 24 March 1992 in Helsinki, Finland, and became effective as of 1 January 2002. The treaty is an instrument for confidence building and promotion of understanding among the signatory countries.
