The Parliament of Lithuania has ratified the agreement on small-scale local border traffic with Belarus. The agreement on small-scale local border traffic between Belarus and Lithuania was signed in Minsk on 20 October 2010. The House of Representatives of Belarus ratified it late last year.
As BelTA was told in the office of the Lithuanian Parliament, the agreement was ratified by an overwhelming majority.
It is envisaged that permits for bordering crossing will be issued to citizens residing permanently in the frontier regions of the two countries, within a 50km radius of the border, who have family connections or who would like to visit the frontier areas of the neighboring state for economic, trade, cultural and other reasons. Holders of special permits will be allowed to stay in the neighboring state for up to 90 days but will not be eligible for work. Such a permit will cost about €20 and will be valid for 5 years.
Nearly 800,000 people in Lithuania and 600,000 in Belarus will be eligible for such permits.
According to the Deputy Chairman of the Parliamentary Committee on Foreign Affairs, Justinas Karosas, the agreement was necessary to simplify communication between people, especially those having relatives in the neighboring country. “Better human contacts bring the nations closer,” the Lithuanian official said.
