On 23 November 2025, meteorological balloons carrying contraband cigarettes from Belarus crossed into Latvia, marking the first known instance of such smuggling in Latvia. Latvian Interior Minister Rihards Kozlovskis confirmed the interception of seven balloons between the evening of 23 November and the morning of 24 November, each containing approximately 60,000 illegal cigarettes. Though the balloons posed no major threat to critical infrastructure, their weight could cause localized damage. Latvia’s internal security services initiated cooperation with Lithuania and Poland for coordinated response measures against this smuggling method. Lithuania had previously intercepted about 550 balloons and 51 drones carrying contraband from Belarus in 2025, leading to a temporary border closure in November. Investigations by Buromedia revealed the Belarusian regime facilitates smuggling, with vast cigarette production funneled through illegal channels controlled by businessman Alyaksei Aleksin, sanctioned by the EU and US as part of a network financing Lukashenka.
Category: Economic & Financial Pressure
Subcategory: Sanctions Evasion & Smuggling
Incident Type: Sanctions busting networks
Country: Latvia
Source report: en.belsat.eu/90187310/…
