Context: The European Union is threatening to impose new sanctions on Belarus over an escalating border dispute with Lithuania. Vilnius opened border crossing points that had been suspended in response to the launch of weather balloons carrying smuggled cigarettes from the Belarusian side. However, Belarusian authorities are preventing Lithuanian trucks and semi-trailers from leaving the country.
Crisis or zloty strengthening?
Alla Hryharchuk, a host at TRK Brest TV and radio company, said that EU sanctions against Belarus allegedly harm the European Union itself. The statement was made on November 28, 2025, during the program “Pryamoy Razgovor”(“Direct Talk”):
“What’s interesting is this: according to their plans, we are supposed to suffer, but things are getting worse for themselves. That’s one of the main topics on Lithuanian television this week.”
The program then aired a clip from a November 21 Lithuanian TV3 Plus news broadcast in which the anchor said: “The era of cheap Polish products — meat, milk, sour cream and butter — appears to be coming to an end. German consumers are finding that shopping in Poland is becoming less cost-effective. Residents of Lithuania are also complaining about rising prices in the neighboring country.”
WTF journalists reviewed the full original Lithuanian news broadcast and found that a Belarusian TV channel had removed a substantial portion of the footage. That omitted section explained what the segment was actually about: “Residents of Lithuania who still travel to the neighboring country for shopping are also complaining about rising prices there. Economists explain that the price gap between the two countries is narrowing: the zloty is strengthening, while the purchasing power of Lithuanian consumers is growing,” the TV3 Plus anchor went on to say.
In other words, the Lithuanian news segment was not about a crisis or inflation, but about the strengthening of the Polish currency and the fact that fewer zlotys are now exchanged for one euro. That is not beneficial for foreigners who travel to the country with euros. In addition, the price gap for goods between European Union countries is narrowing. Five years ago, prices in Poland stood at about 70% of the European average, but they have now risen to 85%. Even so, Poland retains its position in the top three EU countries with the lowest prices.
A protest against the right wing or dissatisfaction with rising prices?
After the segment on prices, the Lithuanian TV anchor in the clip shown in Pryamoy Razgovor moved on to protests: “A large-scale protest took place in central Vilnius, with more than 4,000 participants, ranging from cultural workers to farmers. Despite the fact that the parliament building stood empty on the day of the rally, protesters made it clear that this was only the beginning of pressure if the government continues to pretend that there is no crisis.”
The video did not explain why Lithuanians were protesting. The reasons were left in the original Lithuanian news broadcast: “The trigger [for the protests] was dissatisfaction with the participation of Nemuno Aušra in the ruling coalition and recent appointments at the Ministry of Culture.”
The protests were also not related to prices or living standards. People took to the streets to express opposition to the right-wing populist Lithuanian party Nemuno Aušra. In the most recent elections, in 2024, it won 15% of the vote. The Social Democrats proposed that it join the ruling coalition, offering posts in three ministries. One of them was the Ministry of Culture. The post was given to a former commercial director of a pasta factory — someone with no background in the cultural sector. That sparked outrage in the cultural community even before his appointment.
The new minister remained in office for only a week. After he failed to give a clear answer in an interview to the question “Whose Crimea is it?”, protests erupted with renewed force, and he was forced to step down. Now protesters are demanding that the right wing be removed from governing the country altogether. In their view, the party poses a threat to democratic values.
