Lithuania issued 180 000 visas to Belarusians

This is a 22 percent increase against the same period last year, Lithuanian Foreign Minister Linas Linkevicius on Thursday told journalists in Vilnius. He said that half of the issued visas were multiple. Mr Linkevicius stressed that around 50 percent of visas were issued free of charge.

The Lithuanian foreign minister also touched upon the small cross-border movement between Lithuania and Belarus. He stressed Lithuania had done everything possible and could not do more without violating the Schengen zone rules. The ball is in Belarus'court now, Mr Linkevicius said.