Lithuanian parliament establishes civil defence concept, approves rapid response teams

The Lithuanian parliament (Seimas) on Thursday approved amendments to the Crisis Management and Civil Safety Law, formalising the concept of civil defence in the country, LRT reports.

The changes, proposed by the Ministry of the Interior, introduce civil defence as a component of civil safety aimed at protecting residents from threats to life or health in the event of aggression or the declaration of martial law. Civil defence will also ensure the continuity of vital state functions and support for armed forces and incoming troops.

The legal amendments restructure civilian protection, state continuity, and civil-sector support for the military. They establish joint rapid response teams—permanent readiness units composed of police, fire and rescue services, medical personnel, environmental protection, and other emergency services. The Fire Protection and Rescue Department (PAGD) will coordinate these teams on a regional basis.

A network of preparedness officers will be created, and ministries will be assigned responsibilities for cooperation with non-governmental organisations, business associations, and scientific institutions.

The law expands the network of shelters, fallout shelters, and collective protection facilities, introducing three levels of classification and defining activation mechanisms. Evacuation procedures will also be regulated. A new requirement mandates that any multi-apartment building capable of housing over 100 people must include a fallout shelter.

Linas Jonauskas, chairman of the Environmental Protection Committee, explained that current regulations only require shelters in new public buildings and multi-storey residential buildings over five floors. However, a five-storey building may have only 12 apartments, while a lower building could house 100. “We need to unify the requirements,” he said.

In mid-April, the Ministry of the Interior reported that Lithuania’s municipalities have over 6,600 shelters capable of accommodating around 1.6 million people.

The amendments also introduce a new warning algorithm: the National Crisis Management Centre will decide on warnings in emergency situations, while the Lithuanian Armed Forces will handle air threat announcements. The PAGD will be responsible for implementing these decisions.

Under changes to the Railway Transport Code, carriers will be required to prioritise civilian evacuation, allocating public infrastructure capacity for this purpose.