GPS interference from Russia will not stop even after the war ends

The Lithuanian Minister of Transport has called on EU countries to prepare for a long-term threat to navigation systems from Moscow and Minsk.

GPS signal jamming, which affects the operation of aviation and maritime transport in the Baltic Sea region, will not stop even after the end of the war that Russia is waging against Ukraine, Lithuanian Transport Minister Eugenijus Sabutis said, LRT reports.

Lithuania, together with 12 other EU countries, has appealed to the European Commission to develop measures to counter the systematic and targeted actions of Russia and Belarus aimed at disrupting the operation of satellite navigation systems.

“We should not think that we will return to our previous life, it, in fact, no longer exists,” the minister stressed.

He stressed that the jamming of signals continued even before the start of Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine, and the threat itself is systemic and not related only to military actions.

Sabutis also recalled that the suppression of signals by Russia has ancient roots: even in Soviet times, equipment was used to block the broadcasts of foreign radio stations.

“To say that something has changed is too bold. In this state, nothing has changed and will not change,” the official added.

As USM reported the day before, Sweden has expanded the warning about GPS failures in the Baltic Sea and the Gulf of Finland.