“Lithuania has at international level confirmed our commitment to join the fight against cyber criminals,” says Vice Minister of National Defence Greta Monika Tučkutė who was in attendance at the high-level Counter Ransomware Initiative (CRI) gathering organized in the U.S. by the White House to consolidate efforts of 50 member states and international organisations in the fight against cyber ransomware attacks. Lithuania is among the CRI lead heading the Malware Information Sharing Project.
Vice Minister presented Lithuania’s work done over the year: the Malware Information Sharing Project put into practice at the Regional Cyber Defence Centre (RCDC) Kaunas. Important steps have been implemented over that time to ensure the advanced solution proposed by Lithuania is beneficial to the like-minded CRI members: the Centre for Cybersecurity of Belgium and Lithuania have launched an introductory information-sharing training course.
“We say that cybercriminals know no borders, but the mutual effort of 50 states is too extraordinary for removing all barriers between us precisely. We aim for threat information sharing among different regions, from the Baltic Sea to the Asia-Pacific, as pertains to their specific situations. We plan to offer additional themed training for the Allies with Belgium in 2024 so as to reach more countries who could use our platform to deepen their expertise and foster mutual trust,” said G. M. Tučkutė.
In the course of the visit to the United States, Vice Minister had meetings with top-ranking cyber security officials and shared Lithuania’s experience in strengthening cyber resilience.
At the meeting with U.S. Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for Cyber Policy Mieke Eoyang Vice Minister discussed cybersecurity situation in the Baltic Sea region, assistance to Ukraine, U.S. contribution to RCDC activities, cooperation with the Asia-Pacific and further assistance in developing the cyber defence capability in the Lithuanian Armed Forces.
“Lithuania’s experience, which is not just countering cyber threats from Russia and China but also offering lessons learned to the partners, fits the interest of the Transatlantic and Asia-Pacific regions. Cyber security consultations with the United States deepens Lithuania’s skills and expertise needed to strengthen our national cyber capabilities,” noted G. M. Tučkutė.
At the meeting with Deputy National Security Advisor, Cyber & Emerging Technology Anne Neuberger Vice Minister was thanked for the comprehensive assistance to Ukraine and consistent initiative in international formats. According to A. Neuberger, cyber security is one of the key areas where Lithuania can leverage its experience by sharing it with regional partners and collaborating with the U.S.
During the visit to Pennsylvania G. M. Tučkutė toured the Pennsylvania National Guard units which maintain close cooperation with the RCDC. Meeting Brigadier General Michael Regan, PANG Deputy Adjutant General-Air, she was reassured about the mutual importance of the long-standing collaboration between Lithuania and the Pennsylvania National Guard. According to General, joint training, cyber threat reports on the Baltic and Asia-Pacific regions and cyber resilience expertise exchange builds a strong connections and concrete results.
