Lithuanian initiative calls for government-led national defence centre

Lithuania lacks a unified system for preparing the country for a real crisis, representatives of an initiative to strengthen national defence told LRT. They said municipalities, businesses, medical institutions and the public must be prepared alongside the military.

The initiative proposes establishing a National Defence Centre under the Government and allocating funding for it in next year’s budget.

“No one knows what they will have to do,” the initiative’s representatives said, arguing that Lithuania already has various plans and institutions but lacks a system to bring them together.

Arūnas Degutis, a signatory and one of the guests on LRT’s “Dienos tema” programme, said national defence was based on two pillars: NATO collective defence and comprehensive national defence.

He said the main problem was that politicians and the public understood comprehensive defence in different ways. Some believed NATO would solve everything, while others thought it meant that the entire population should take up arms.

“First of all, it means continuity during a conflict, when all functions must continue to operate,” Degutis said, adding that municipalities, food supplies and medical services would all have to function.

He said institutions currently operated under different ministries and lacked effective interaction and clear leadership. Although coordination existed, he said it was not enough because institutions often defended their own rights, budgets and interests rather than taking the initiative.

“They protect themselves and are not inclined to take initiatives themselves. If something happens, they will look for someone else to blame,” Degutis said.

Gintė Damušytė, a former ambassador to NATO, said a National Defence Centre should be established under the Government and the prime minister.

She said responsibilities were currently scattered among different state institutions, which independently implemented their own programmes. The proposed centre would coordinate their work, set out the principles and goals of comprehensive defence, issue instructions and help both public institutions and society understand what to do in wartime.

Damušytė said she had joined the initiative not only as a former ambassador but as an ordinary citizen who wanted to know what to do. She said friends, relatives, neighbours and colleagues wanted the same information.

She also questioned whether the state knew how many residents would actually be prepared to spend several days without electricity, fuel, water, communications or the ability to buy food.

Damušytė said the private sector was an integral part of the defence system and that key industrial, transport and energy companies should have plans prepared in advance.

The programme also featured Tomas Godliauskas, head of the Comprehensive Defence Association.