Lithuania is concerned about the growing number of Central Asian immigrants
In the last three years, the number of Central Asian immigrants to Lithuania has increased 14 times. The head of the Lithuanian State Security Department, Dariusz Jaunishkis, said that there are no grounds for serious concerns at the moment, but that anti-Western sentiment is growing.
In the last three years, the number of Central Asian immigrants to Lithuania has increased 14 times. The head of the State Security Department of Lithuania, Darius Jauniskis, said that his department cannot check all travelers , which creates an additional risk in the field of counter-intelligence and the fight against terrorism. So far, there are no grounds for serious concerns, but anti-Western sentiment is growing, he said in an interview with LRT.lt.
Jauniskis added that over the past two years, intelligence services have identified four foreigners associated with terrorist organizations. It was recommended that they be refused residence permits and banned from entering Lithuania.
Lithuanian Prime Minister Ingrida Shimonite responded to his statement and noted that despite the increase in migration from Central Asia, its scale remains insignificant. He added that since the beginning of the year, only a few hundred foreign citizens have received temporary residence permits in Lithuania.
"There were problems, but they were partially solved thanks to the new laws. I am sure that with the introduction of quotas for workers from third countries, which will come into force in 2025, we will be able to further regulate this issue," said Shimon i t e .
According to the data of the Migration Department, as of October 1, 10,600 citizens of Uzbekistan were living in Lithuania, while at the beginning of the year this figure was 8,200, and in 2022 it was 998. The number of citizens of Tajikistan has also increased, from 5.7 thousand at the beginning of the year to 7.2 thousand.
Uzbekistan and Tajikistan currently occupy the fourth and fifth places in terms of the number of immigrants in Lithuania, after Ukraine (77.5 thousand), Belarus (61.3 thousand) and Russia (15.3 thousand). In general, there are about 222,000 foreigners with residence permits in the country.
