About 100 million euros will be invested in the construction of shooting ranges and infrastructure for the military training ground in the Lithuanian town of Kapčiamiestis, reported the Ministry of Defense of the Baltic Republic.
Lithuania plans to allocate 100 million euros for the construction of a military training ground in the town of Kapčiamiestis, located in the Suwalki Corridor near the borders of Poland and Belarus, as well as the Kaliningrad region of the Russian Federation. This is stated in a press release from the defense ministry of the Baltic state, published on Friday, January 9.
"About 100 million euros will be invested in the construction of shooting ranges and infrastructure. Approximately 100 civilian employees and military personnel will work and serve at the training ground," the statement said.
Lithuania's Plans to Build a Military Training Ground in Kapčiamiestis
The plans to build a military training ground in Kapčiamiestis for a brigade-sized unit were announced by the Lithuanian State Defense Council at the end of December 2025. The president's advisor, Deividas Matulionis, emphasized that the protection of the Suwalki Corridor will receive special attention from Lithuania, Poland, and NATO, as reported by the Lithuanian media company LRT.
The Suwalki Corridor is an area on the border between Lithuania, Poland, Belarus, and the Kaliningrad region of the Russian Federation. Its length is less than 100 km, but it has significant strategic importance as it connects Lithuania with the main territory of the European Union.
Local Residents' Discontent with Plans to Create a Military Training Ground in Kapčiamiestis
Meanwhile, the decision to create a training ground in Kapčiamiestis has faced disapproval from local residents. According to a statement from the Lithuanian Ministry of Defense on January 9, the head of the ministry, Robertas Kaušas, the commander of the Baltic Republic's army, General Raimundas Vaikšnoras, representatives from the Ministry of Environment, and other officials held a meeting with local residents to seek a compromise.
According to LRT, at the end of December, Lithuania's Deputy Minister of Defense, Bronys Beniušas, "tried to convince residents with the argument that the training ground in Kapčiamiestis would create a deterrent effect for Belarus, which has the Gozhsky training ground nearby." He emphasized that there is practically no 15,000 hectares of state land necessary for the training ground in other parts of Lithuania, as stated in the publication.
It is expected that the law necessary for the establishment of the training ground will be adopted in Lithuania by spring.
