Lithuania declares state of emergency after Ukraine attacked

Brussels: Lithuanian President Gitanas Nauseda on Thursday signed a decree declaring a state of emergency in the Baltic country in response to Russia's military attack on Ukraine.

The Baltic country's parliament was expected to approve the measure in an extraordinary session later on Thursday.

The measure, in effect until March 10, allows for a more flexible use of state reserve funds and increased border protection, giving border guards greater authorities to stop and search individuals and vehicles in border areas.

NATO member Lithuania borders Russia's Kaliningrad region to the southwest, Belarus to the east, Latvia to the north and Poland to the south.

World leaders expressed a raw outrage shrouded by an impotence to immediately come to the aid of Ukraine to avoid a major war in Europe, condemning Russia's attack on its neighbour as the European Union and others promised unprecedented sanctions to hit the Kremlin.

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen called it a barbaric attack on an independent nation that also targeted the stability in Europe and the whole of the international peace order.

The EU will hold an emergency summit in Brussels, where NATO is also meeting after Poland and the Baltic nations bordering Russia and Ukraine called for an

urgent session.