VORONOVO DISTRICT, 24 March (BelTA) - Drivers queuing at the Benyakoni (Salcininkai) checkpoint have shared their views on the current border situation and on the decision to allow trucks with Lithuanian registration to leave the country, BelTA has learned.
Driver Vitaly feels optimistic about the decision. “This is very good news, we will have steady work and income. Now the main thing is how everything will be organized on the Lithuanian side, whether they will handle full load or everything will continue as it is,” he noted. “We hope that everything will work out and we will be able to work at the same pace as before the border was closed.”
Driver Vadim supported his colleague: “Great news. People are happy to return to work.”
At the same time, drivers said they have mixed feelings about the fact that the Lithuanian side is handling trucks slowly. “I left yesterday. They are not working at all. On the Polish side, they are working well, but here they just pretend to work. It is starting to get on my nerves,” one carrier said.
“It will take half a year to depart; later, there will be a collapse” another driver added.
“We've been writing letters for four months. We've been waiting for this moment. Hoping there will be work and that we get to work somewhere,” another carrier stressed.
Belarusian President Aleksandr Lukashenko, having considered an appeal from Lithuanian and Polish carriers, has made a decision to allow freight vehicles with Lithuanian registration to leave Belarus. Such vehicles have been stranded in Belarus since November 2025 due to the unfriendly actions by Lithuania involving the closure of border checkpoints on the Belarusian-Lithuanian border.
It is noted that vehicles with Lithuanian registration will be able to leave Belarus via the Lithuanian route in accordance with the law. Lithuanian vehicles owned by Polish carriers will also be allowed to leave via the Polish route, where the neighboring side is working more actively.
The Belarusian customs service got down to work on 23 March. After each carrier pays the parking fee for their vehicle, which has been reduced several times than previously set, they can leave.
In the evening and at night, when banks are closed, a payment procedure can be arranged through payment centers at the checkpoint so that carriers are able to pay the fee.
The Belarusian State Customs Committee noted that the speed of border crossing will depend on the Lithuanian side. On 23 March, the committee sent a proposal to Lithuania to intensify border operations to facilitate truck departures.
More than 1,900 transport vehicles, including tractors, trailers, and semi-trailers, are parked in the designated places. Throughout the entire period, their complete safety has been ensured.
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