Lithuanian border guards’ unions complain that they are armed with old unreliable Kalashnikovs and undersupplied with ammunition. In case of a foreign invasion, border guards say they would be the first line of defence.
Shooting is an important part of border guards’ training and the main weapon is the pistol.
However, border guards’ trade unions have complained to opposition MPs that there may not be enough weapons in the event of an attack from Belarus.
“Border guards come to us and say: we are statutory workers, we can’t talk openly, but listen – we are 4,000 border guards and they gave 200 automatic rifles. They didn’t give us any ammunition. How are we supposed to defend the border or at least hold out against the enemy for 25 minutes before the Ministry of Defence springs to action,” said MP Jonas Pinskus of the Regions Group.
Rustamas Liubajevas, the commander of the Border Guard Service (VSAT), says that the weapons in question are German G-36 automatic rifles that meet NATO standards and are now used for training, and denies that border guards are not supplied with ammunition.
But he admits that there is not enough.
“For a small number of automatic rifles or automatic weapons, we have a certain number of ammunition. If we talk about the future, we will definitely need to have more,” Liubajevas said.
According to the VSAT commander, his officers have enough pistols. Border guards also have enough Kalashnikov guns and ammunition for them.
These guns, however, are antiquated and sub-standard, a trade union representative says.
“You can imagine an automatic rifle, which is the same age as I am, well over 50 years,” said Rimantas Liepa of the Border Guards Trade Union. “Maybe it will shoot, but it’s just not clear whether it will shoot well. It’s not that border guards will be running around with hammers – they are armed, but not nearly well enough.”
MP Laurynas Kasciunas, chairman of the parliamentary Committee on National Security and Defence, gives his own version of why this has happened.
“There should be a closer interaction between the military and the internal affairs system, because in the event of martial law, the structure of the Ministry of Interior is part of the armed forces, especially when it comes to border protection. It is natural that they should not be seen as some kind of younger cousins, but as brothers next door,” Kasciunas said.
Lithuania’s military chief believes, however, there is no need to arm the border guards too much.
“I believe that, in peacetime, these services should ensure their direct function, while the military should prepare for the armed defence of the country,” said Valdemaras Rupsys, chief of the armed forces. “In my opinion, it is wrong for the army to protect the border, while someone else is concerned about preparing for armed defence.”
Kasciunas assures that until the end of the year, border guards will have 2,000 NATO-compliant automatic weapons.
“The situation regarding automatic weapons was very well known to everyone, we have been talking about it all the time – for a long time little or nothing was done to change the situation. This year, we have had a breakthrough, with dedicated budget funding and the start of procurement. It is a very large batch of weapons,” VSAT chief Liubajevas said.
According to current regulation, all 4,000 border guards must have automatic weapons, according to him.
“We hope that next year we will fully implement that project to arm the State Border Guard Service, but it will depend again on the market situation. The Western arms industry is currently late with orders,” Liubajevas added. (LRT/Business World Magazine)