White House thanks Telia for enabling critical comms during NATO summit

Five Telia Lithuania employees received certificates of appreciation from the White House Communications Agency for providing critical communications support to US President Joe Biden, the White House Staff and the United States Secret Service during the NATO summit held in Vilnius in July.

Telia not only provided secure communications at the Lithuanian Exhibition and Congress Centre in Vilnius, but also wherever the US president and his team travelled around the city. Due to the stringent security requirements imposed by the Secret Service, the scope of work, exact locations, and service specifications were not disclosed to Telia until the very last moment. Nevertheless, all of the Secret Service’s requirements were met.

“We have received numerous significant awards and recognitions for the quality of our services and customer service in the past,” says Giedrė Kaminskaitė-Salters, CEO of Telia Lithuania. “However, we had never received thanks from the White House, so I am very proud of all my colleagues who contributed to this project and demonstrated that we can impress millions of our daily customers in Lithuania and the visiting US president with the quality of our service.”

Over the course of a week in July, Telia implemented internet solutions and digital phone lines that met all of the US delegation’s security requirements, at locations ranging from the airport to hotels, Vilnius Town Hall and St. John’s Church, where the US president delivered his speech.

While Five Telia Lithuania employees were singled out and thanked personally by the White House Communications Agency, but Kaminskaitė-Salter noted that the success of the project was, as always, due to the contributions of many other colleagues who went the extra mile.

During the NATO summit, which was attended by delegations from 48 countries and thousands of media representatives from around the world, Telia set up more than 2,000 workstations with fixed internet connections and power outlets at the Lithuanian Exhibition and Congress Centre. Telia also provided 24/7 security via a network operations center and a dedicated network consisting of 150 km of cable and 10 km of optical fibers.