Lithuania's President Gitanas Nauseda speaks during a joint news conference with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and Polish President Andrzej Duda following their talks at The Mariinskyi Palace in Kyiv, on Feb. 23.
Efrem Lukatsky/The Associated Press
Lithuania’s president declared a state of emergency on Thursday, telling the NATO country’s army to deploy along its borders in response to “possible disturbances and provocations due to large military forces massed in Russia and Belarus.”
The state of emergency, declared hours after Russian forces invaded Ukraine, will be valid for two weeks.
Russia launches invasion of Ukraine with bombardments of major cities
Parliament will meet later on Thursday to vote whether to confirm or cancel President Gitanas Nauseda decision.
Story continues below advertisement
Once ruled from Moscow but now part of NATO and the European Union, Lithuania borders Belarus and the Russian enclave of Kaliningrad.
Our Morning Update and Evening Update newsletters are written by Globe editors, giving you a concise summary of the day’s most important headlines. Sign up today.