Last week, the University of Lithuania presented its first medical 3D printer; An Indian woman died when a car carrying migrants plunged into a river
The president is ready to sign a decree on the revocation of the figure skater’s citizenship
The President of Lithuania Gitans Nauseda announced on Friday, September 15, that it will not be long before he signs a decree by which Russian ice dancer Margarita Drubiacka will be deprived of her Lithuanian citizenship. He hinted he would do so before leaving to attend the UN General Assembly meetings in New York next week. The Citizenship Commission recommended on Thursday that Drubiatsko be stripped of her Lithuanian citizenship, citing her public support for the Kremlin regime waging war in Ukraine. The ice dancer said in an open letter earlier this week that she does not participate in Russian propaganda, but instead spreads the light of culture and goodness. Drobiačko received Lithuanian citizenship in 1993 for his merits in sports and promoting the name of the country. Drubiatsko together with her husband Povilas Vanagas once represented Lithuania in various tournaments.
In some schools, teachers are on strike
Teachers in some schools across Lithuania staged a two-hour warning strike on Friday, September 15. It is expected that approximately 5,000 teachers and other education workers in 228 educational institutions – schools, kindergartens and educational centers – will join this work, the Lithuanian Education Workers’ Union (LEETU) informed. Among them are 33 educational institutions in Vilnius, 44 in Klaipėda, 17 in Alytos, 20 in Panevezys and only three in Kaunas, according to the head of the trade union Andrius Navikas. Some schools canceled the first two hours of classes, while other schools conducted remote learning on Friday. The LEETU union is demanding a 20% salary increase for teachers from September and another 30% from January, as well as a reduction in class sizes. Education Minister Gintotas Gakstas said that teachers’ salaries increased in January as agreed, and there is no possibility of an increase from September. The union intends to call a general strike if no agreement is reached on its demands by the end of September.
The Foreign Office attacks the London embassy
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Lithuania began to examine the use of representation funds at the embassy in London, after receiving additional information about the possible violation of two diplomats – Ambassador to Great Britain Etvīdas Pajarūnas and NATO Ambassador Dāvids Matulionis. The news website delfi.lt reported in August that the Ministry of Foreign Affairs had received complaints from employees about possible mobbing and abuse of power by Pajarūn. There were also accusations that Matulionis might not have fulfilled the mandate given to him by state institutions and weakened Lithuania’s negotiating position in the negotiations on the documents of the NATO summit in Vilnius.
LTG will purchase at least 17 electric locomotives by 2027
LTG Cargo, the cargo transportation company of the Lithuanian state-owned railway concern Lietuvos Geležinkeliai (Lietuvas dzelzceļš, LTG), announced on Thursday, September 14, that it plans to purchase at least 17 electric locomotives and put them into operation by 2027, said Egidius Lazauskas. , Group CEO The competition aroused considerable interest from potential suppliers, says Lazauskas. LTG Cargo wants to buy electric locomotives for cargo transportation between Vilnius and Klaipeda seaport, and it is planned to invest about 100 million euros in the project.
Launch of the first medical 3D printer
The first certified medical 3D printer in Europe has been launched at the Lithuanian University of Health Sciences. The university announced on Thursday, September 14, that the device is capable of creating customized medications for each patient, increasing the effectiveness of medications by combining several substances in one pill, and reducing side effects. The printer allows you to put different microcapsules in one tablet and cover them with different layers of excipients that regulate the release of the medicinal substance. The new 3D printer is the first of its kind in Europe and the first in the world, according to the university.
The opposition LVGU refuses the agreement on public education
The opposition Union of Lithuanian Farmers and Greens has decided to withdraw from the National Education Agreement, which was signed by the country’s political parties two years ago. Party leader Ramūns Karbauskis said on Wednesday, September 13, that the decision was made by the party council. “LSBP studied the situation and made a decision to withdraw from the National Education Policy Agreement concluded in 2021, based on the daily deterioration of the situation in the field of education,” said Karbauskis. On the other hand, Minister of Education, Science and Sports Gintars Jakšts evaluates this step as an avoidance of responsibility. As he said, the agreement is valid until 2030, and the current government is responsible for fulfilling its obligations until the end of 2024. Another opposition party, the Labor Party, previously announced it was considering pulling out of the deal, saying it would. it takes so long. A step if it is confirmed that the parties’ agreement on education policy in Lithuania has not been implemented.
Anyone older than 6 months will be eligible for coronavirus vaccines
Vaccination against the coronavirus this season will be available to all citizens of Lithuania from the age of six months and will be offered free of charge to those who have mandatory health insurance, the Ministry of Health announced on Wednesday, September 13. The ministry plans to reveal the vaccination strategy to the public at the end of September. Authorities will consider declaring a pandemic at the national or local level if the cumulative incidence of influenza, COVID-19 and the common cold exceeds 1,500 cases per 100,000 population per week, and if more than 1,500 hospital beds and 120 hospitals are occupied by coronavirus and influenza patients. beds. or intensive care beds for more than a week. The Ministry of Health has registered a slight increase in daily cases in recent weeks.
An Indian woman died when a car carrying migrants plunged into a river
In the early hours of Wednesday, September 13, an Indian woman died when a car carrying illegal migrants fell into a river in southern Lithuania, the Police Department announced. Marijambolu district police received a report at 3:36 a.m. that a Mazda car was transporting illegal migrants. The car was spotted on the Mariambool-Calvariga road but failed to stop when police signaled. The Mazda left the road in Chisubi at around 3:50 a.m. in Ludvinava. Police detained three men, illegal immigrants, possibly Indian nationals, and began searching for the driver of the car. A woman, believed to be an Indian national, died in the accident. Preliminary information shows that the illegal immigrants crossed the Lithuanian border from Latvia.
The recruitment of women will be possible after the general recruitment of men
In Lithuania, compulsory military service for women can be introduced only if there is a general conscription of men, said Kestutis Podres, the chief adviser to President Gitanas Nauseda on national security issues, on Tuesday, September 12. The chancellor’s comment comes after the Lithuanian Business Federation and the association Lyderė (Women Leaders) called on the Ministry of Defense to start discussions on the conscription of women. The Ministry of Defense recently tabled an army reform bill in parliament, but it does not include universal conscription for men or compulsory military service for women.
The investigation of a man accused of spying for Belarus has been completed
On Monday, September 11, Lithuanian law enforcement authorities completed the investigation against Mantas Danilius, a resident of Vilnius, held as a spy for Belarus, and are preparing to hand him over for trial next week. The pre-trial investigation in this case was conducted by the Lithuanian Criminal Police Office and supervised by the Vilnius District Prosecutor’s Office. Danilius is suspected of abducting, obtaining, collecting and transferring information constituting a Lithuanian state secret or other information of interest to foreign intelligence services while performing a mission for the benefit of another country. He is suspected of espionage, which carries a prison sentence of six to 15 years.
