Twenty-three years after Lithuania became an independent nation, the country is an enthusiastic member of NATO and the European Union. Vast EU-backed investments have helped establish the country as a Western-orientated democracy. A landmark date for the integration of Lithuania, and its Baltic neighbours Latvia and Estonia, into Europe was December 21, 2007, when the three countries signed the Schengen Agreement, which allows the free, trans-border movement of people and goods within the majority of the EU. Lithuania's entry boosted the country's economic and financial prospects. It also opened opportunities for organised crime and smuggling counterfeit goods from non-Schengen countries. In Lithuania, the vital border patrol role falls to the State Border Guard Service (SBGS) and its small, modern and well-equipped fleet of patrol helicopters.
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