DISINFO: Lithuanian authorities buy guns instead of vaccines
SUMMARY
Lithuanian Defence ministry buys guns amid the COVID-19 pandemic and its impact on the economy.
The programmes of vaccination in Lithuania, as well as in the EU in general, are slow and ineffective. In this context, the decision to buy guns and old armed vehicles looks like a very irresponsible decision of Lithuanian authorities.
RESPONSE
A recurring pro-Kremlin disinformation narrative attacking Lithuania in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Purchases of vaccines and military spending are not connected. Lithuania is not buying COVID-19 vaccines individually. The purchase of COVID-19 vaccines in the EU is centralised and is being implemented by the European Commission (EC). The EC has secured up to 2.6 billion doses of COVID-19 vaccines so far and negotiations are underway for additional doses. Lithuania should get more than 7 million doses of vaccines (the population of Lithuania is 2.7 million people).
Lithuania is implementing its vaccination strategy. According to the data of the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control, 17,6% of the population in Lithuania has received the first dose of a COVID-19 vaccine and 7.2% uptook the second dose of vaccine (data from April 12, 2021).
Military spending is aimed to improve the military security of Lithuania. In 2020, the state’s defence expenditure was 2.13% of GDP (NATO guideline for member states is 2% of GDP).
See similar cases of disinformation against Lithuania in the context of COVID-19 pandemic and vaccination (here and here) as well as claims that the Lithuanian army is buying unnecessary weapons.