Free Republic

Cold War: The White House has announced our absence at ceremonies marking the 20th anniversary of the fall of the Berlin Wall. Meanwhile, Russia has been practicing a nuclear invasion of an abandoned Poland. The Berlin Wall has been a famous backdrop for American presidents sounding the battle cry of liberty in the struggle against tyranny. It was there that John F. Kennedy expressed our solidarity with the encircled residents of that outpost of freedom with his famous "Ich bin ein Berliner." And it was there that Ronald Reagan, with a defiant "Mr. Gorbachev, tear down this wall," voiced our...

Shootings and solidarity: a very problematic case Two murders shocked my hometown Kaunas. When I heard that a judge was murdered, I thought, 'Mafia shootouts - here they go again'... We have more or less forgotten about them since the 90s. However, the case proved to be quite different. It provokes thousands of comments on news portals every day now. Apparently, almost a year ago, or so they say, the judge, the other victim and the judge's colleague were accused of child molesting by Drasius Kedys, the father of the child concerned, and he is now the key suspect. The...

Lithuania Parliament Rejects CIA Prison Probe By REUTERS Published: September 10, 2009 VILNIUS (Reuters) - Lithuania's parliament on Thursday rejected holding an inquiry into a U.S. report that the country hosted a secret CIA prison for al Qaeda suspects. ABC News reported in August that Lithuania was the third European country after Poland and Romania to have provided the Central Intelligence Agency with facilities for detaining and, possibly, interrogating suspects. "The committees have concluded that there is no factual information, confirming at least in part the media allegations, and also, that there is no ground to conduct any new investigation,"...

"Irresponsible" To Identify Secret Sites, Says CIA; Lithuania Denies Allegation A third European country has been identified to ABC News as providing the CIA with facilities for a secret prison for high-value al Qaeda suspects: Lithuania, the former Soviet state. Former CIA officials directly involved or briefed on the highly classified program tell ABC News that Lithuanian officials provided the CIA with a building on the outskirts of Vilnius, the country's capital, where as many as eight suspects were held for more than a year, until late 2005 when they were moved because of public disclosures about the program. Flight...

Baltic economies - a painful downfall after years of prosperity In the first six months of 2009, the Baltic states' GDP shrank by nearly 20%, which was the worst result in Europe. As a consequence of job cuts in private enterprises and the public sector, the unemployment level has tripled in comparison with the preceding year to exceed 15% in all three countries. It is still unclear from the economic data for the past few months whether recession in the Baltic states will continue to worsen. However, it seems that the economic indices will not fall so rapidly in the...

Lithuania in Russia customs row Tension has risen between Lithuania and Russia over inspections of Lithuanian goods lorries, many of which are now stuck at Russian customs. Lithuania accuses Russian customs officials of singling out Lithuanian lorries trying to enter Russia from neighbouring Latvia. Reports say hundreds of Lithuanian lorries are stuck at the Latvia border. Russian officials say the tighter inspections follow breaches of customs regulations by Lithuanian hauliers. Both Latvia and Lithuania - former Soviet republics - are EU members. Lithuania's transport ministry says the delays are causing daily losses of up to 500 euros (£429) per lorry....

Lithuania MPs ban gay ‘promotion’ AFP/Vilnius Lithuanian lawmakers voted overwhelmingly yesterday to overturn a presidential veto of a child-protection law that bans what supporters say is the promotion of homosexuality. The law, due to come into force in March 2010, bars the “public dissemination” of information favourable to homosexuality, claiming it could harm the mental health and physical, intellectual and moral development of youngsters. The legislation - which also covers bisexuality, polygamy, images of heterosexual intercourse, death and severe injury, the paranormal, foul language and bad eating habits - does not specifically define public dissemination nor set down the punishment...

An Open Letter to the Obama Administration from Central and Eastern Europe 2009-07-15 by Valdas Adamkus, Martin Butora, Emil Constantinescu, Pavol Demes, Lubos Dobrovsky, Matyas Eorsi, Istvan Gyarmati, Vaclav Havel, Rastislav Kacer, Sandra Kalniete, Karel Schwarzenberg, Michal Kovac, Ivan Krastev, Alexander Kwasniewski, Mart Laar, Kadri Liik, Janos Martonyi. Janusz Onyszkiewicz, Adam Rotfeld, Vaira Vike-Freiberga, Alexandr Vondra, Lech Walesa. We have written this letter because, as Central and Eastern European (CEE) intellectuals and former policymakers, we care deeply about the future of the transatlantic relationship as well as the future quality of relations between the United States and the countries of...

WASHINGTON (AFP) – A group of 25 US lawmakers urged Lithuania and Poland in letters released Wednesday to enact laws this year to address restituting property the Nazis stole during the Holocaust. Democratic Representative Robert Wexler and 24 colleagues wrote to prime ministers Donald Tusk of Poland and Andrius Kubilius of Lithuania to push for action on the legislation during a June 26-30 conference on Holocaust-era assets to be held in Prague. "We believe that the Prague Conference may represent the last and best opportunity to resolve outstanding Holocaust-era issues during the lifetime of Holocaust survivors," wrote Wexler. He urged...

Poland Follows Lithuania in Considering Law to Protect Youth from Promotion of Homosexuality By Peter J. Smith WARSAW, June 19, 2009 (LifeSiteNews.com) – Poland may soon consider passing a new law, similar to the one passed this week in neighboring Lithuania, that bans the media and schools from promoting adverse behaviors to the development of young people, including violence, suicide, and homosexuality. MP Artur Górski, deputy head of the parliamentary commission on Polish-Lithuanian cooperation, has stated he intends to copy the Lithuanian law and introduce it before the nation’s parliament for passage. "I have already asked for the translation of...

Riga - The economic gloom afflicting the Baltic states got several shades darker Tuesday with a fresh forecasts revising expectations downwards. Until mid-2007 the so-called 'Baltic Tigers' of Estonia, Lithuania and Latvia recorded Europe's fastest growth rates, but their economies have stalled spectacularly in the wake of the global downturn. According to a spring forecast from the Estonian Ministry of Finance, the economy in the smallest of the Baltic states will contract by 8.5 percent in 2009. "Estonia is undoubtedly at a difficult time. At the same time this gives us a real opportunity to use the downturn to create...

<p>In these difficult times for creditors, a Lithuanian debt collector is offering an unconventional service to retrieve arrears: witchcraft.</p> <p>The Vilnius-based firm has hired Vilija Lobaciuviene, the Baltic nation's most famous self-styled witch, to hunt down companies and individuals who are failing to pay their debts amid the credit crunch.</p>

WASHINGTON, Dec. 22, 2008 – The number of daily attacks in Iraq has dropped nearly 95 percent since last year, a U.S. military official said yesterday. Iraq suffered an average of 180 attacks per day this time last year. But over the past week, the average number was 10, Army Brig. Gen. David G. Perkins, a Multinational Force Iraq spokesman, said. “This is a dramatic improvement of safety throughout the country,” Perkins told reporters during a wide-ranging news conference in Baghdad yesterday. He added that the country’s murder rates have dropped below levels that existed before the start of American...

A pistol-wielding guard, his snarling alsatian, a blinding spotlight in my face... why did I spend £25 to be tortured in this freezing KGB bunker? As a snarling alsatian growls at my heels, straining at its leash, the fierce KGB interrogator barks in harsh Russian for me to face the wall for a terrifying search. Once cleared, I am herded with the rest of this ragtag band of ‘dissenters’ to salute the Soviet red flag, our threadbare gulag-issue jackets offering scant protection against the biting Baltic chill. We are told to stop thinking ‘because the party will do that for...

BAGHDAD – The Lithuanian armed forces contingent officially brought its mission in Iraq to a close Dec. 16 during a ceremony at Al Faw Palace. The Lithuanians have provided an infantry platoon and multiple staff officers in support of Multi-National Force – Iraq, Multi-National Corps – Iraq, Multi-National, Division – South East and Multi-National Division – Central South since 2003. The contingent, with the use of its infantry platoon deployed to Forward Operating Bases Delta and Echo, has provided security and a quick reaction force in support of U.S. and coalition forces. They also provided essential training to members of...

11/25/2008 - SIAULIAI, Lithuania (AFNS) -- More than 20 Airmen from Royal Air Force Lakenheath, England, volunteered their time and talents with Lithuanian children Nov. 15 at the District Vijurkai Children's Home in Vijurkai, Lithuania. The Airmen, deployed from the 48th Fighter Wing, are in Lithuania to perform the NATO Baltic air policing mission, and took time out to play sports, do puzzles and eat pizza with the children. "We wanted to give something back to the community," said Master Sgt. Margaret Williams, the 493rd Expeditionary Fighter Squadron first sergeant. "The primary reason we go to the children's home is...

The upcoming meeting between President-elect Barack Obama and his onetime rival Sen. John McCain was set in motion during a phone call over the weekend between Obama and Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.), McCain's closest friend. In an interview Friday, Graham said that Obama requested the meeting during a 20-minute phone call that the South Carolina senator described as a "pleasant" discussion about how they could work together effectively. "We just talked about the desire to find something meaningful to work on," Graham said. "He was very nice to me, said that he considered me a serious, reform-minded senator that he...

VILNIUS, Lithuania -- A conservative party critical of Russia appeared headed for a victory in the second round of Lithuania's parliamentary election Sunday, signaling the return of a center-right government. With nearly half the vote counted in 68 run-off races, the conservative Homeland Union was leading in 24 districts, the Central Election Committee said. Combined with the 18 seats the party won in the first round two weeks ago, the conservatives were poised to gain at least 40 seats in the 141-member parliament, giving it the mandate to form a center-right government. Lithuanian voters, weary of scandals surrounding the ruling...

A conservative party critical of Russia appeared headed for a victory in the second round of Lithuania's parliamentary election Sunday, signaling the return of a center-right government to the Baltic country. With nearly half the vote counted in 68 run-off races, the conservative Homeland Union was leading in 24 districts, the Central Election Committee said.

10/6/2008 - SIAULIAI, Lithuania (AFNS) -- For the second time in history, an American flag was raised over the Quick Reaction Facility in Siauliai during a ceremony marking the U.S. Air Force's assumption of responsibility for the NATO Baltic air policing mission. The ceremony began with Lithuanian Lt. Col. Raimundas Matulis, Ministry of Defense representative, thanking the German Air Force for the support they provided during the last three months and welcoming the newly arrived U.S. personnel. "Welcome to the Baltic States. On behalf of the Ministry of Defense, I wish you success and hope you make friends," Colonel Matulis...

A NATO base to support the airlift operations of 12 nations will be established in Hungary early next year, and about 40 U.S. military members will be calling the station 100 miles west of Budapest home, according to an alliance agreement. The Strategic Airlift Capability Partnership — which involves the joint acquisition of three C-17 Globemasters — will increase NATO’s ability to transport large numbers of troops and supplies to far-flung places, such as Afghanistan. The town of Papa will host the base to be commanded by U.S. Air Force Col. John Zazworsky. "It (airlift capability) has been a longstanding...

The President had yet another busy and no doubt worrying day first of all making a statement on the financial rescue legislation early morning on the South Lawn of the White House. He also met with at the White House President Valdas Adamkus of Lithuania and Ukraine's President Viktor Yushchenko. After his meeting with Yushchenko the President spoke about the failed bailout On a somewhat lighter and more pleasant note the President presented the 2007 National Medal of Technology and Innovation Medals. Pray for President Bush -- Day 2938 - McCain/Palin--Day 32 Defense Secretary Robert Gates spoke to students of...

TBILISI, Georgia (CNN) -- The leaders of a former Eastern Bloc nation and four former Soviet republics showed support for Georgia in its conflict with Russia at a massive rally in Georgia's capital Tuesday night. The presidents' appearances came shortly before France's leader announced that Georgia had accepted a Russian-French plan to end the conflict. Thousands cheered as the presidents of Poland, Ukraine, Lithuania, Latvia, and Estonia stood with Georgian President Mikheil Saakashvili at a rally in Tbilisi, Georgia, late Tuesday.

If there were those in the West who hadn’t heard about Lithuania before, they almost certainly had by the end of the day, January 13, 1991. That was the day Soviet troops cracked down in Vilnius and the resulting bloodshed made headlines around the world. The action was apparently a bid to stop Lithuania’s independence drive in its tracks. By the time the firing stopped and the smoke cleared, more than a dozen people lay dead, and hundreds more were injured. The crackdown, and particularly the killings at the TV tower, not only brought fame and sympathy to Lithuania from...

WARSAW (AFP)--The presidents of five ex-communist countries will travel to Georgia to back Georgia in its war with Russia, a senior aide to Poland's President Lech Kaczynski told AFP Monday.

Russia's neighbours put on edge by war threat (AFP) 10 August 2008 WARSAW - The conflict between Georgia and Russia has stunned eastern European nations who can still feel the scars of their domination by the former Soviet Union. Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania and Poland called on the European Union and NATO to oppose Russia's "imperialist" policy towards Georgia. And even countries such as Sweden, which was not part of the Soviet bloc, expressed extreme concern at the conflict, making comparisons to Adolf Hitler's tactics as leader of Nazi Germany. Russia has in turn been vocal in criticising neighbours such as...

My great-grandfather didn't leave his home in the hope of finding a better life - just a life On Tuesday we buried my great-uncle Gus. Most of the service was in Hebrew and I spent it, as I always do at these occasions, glancing at the prayerbooks of the men around me, trying to guess... (...) Twenty-three years later, standing at the funeral of his last surviving son, the women on one side, men on the other, Gus in a box in front of us with a cloth over it bearing the Star of David, I thought how interesting it...

A judicial inquiry into the wartime activities of Jewish anti-Nazi resistance fighters in Lithuania has led to accusations that the small Baltic state is trying to distort the history of World War II. The row follows investigations by the country's prosecutor into whether the former partisans - Holocaust survivors now in their 80s - themselves committed war crimes. Israel has denounced the inquiry as scandalous and refused to allow one of the main potential witnesses to be questioned. Britain's foremost World War II historian, Sir Martin Gilbert, told the BBC he was "deeply shocked" by the investigation, which he called...

BUENOS AIRES, July 19 (UPI) -- Lithuanian President Valdas Adamkus says his country is ready to conduct talks with the United States about hosting elements of a missile defense system. Negotiations between the United States and Poland to deploy 10 anti-missile missiles in the country as part of an eastern European missile shield have stalled, and Adamkus says his country is willing to step into the breach, RIA Novosti reported Saturday. While visiting Buenos Aires, Adamkus told the Argentine newspaper La Nacion he's open to such discussions. "Lithuania is not currently engaged in negotiations with the United States on deploying...

Russian President Dmitry Medvedev told George W. Bush yesterday that putting US missile defence bases in neighbouring Lithuania was "absolutely unacceptable", a Russian official said. The meeting of the two leaders ahead of the Group of Eight summit in northern Japan was the first time the pair have met since Mr Medvedev was sworn in as president in May. Former Russian president Vladimir Putin still wields enormous influence as prime minister. "The Russian President openly expressed his serious concern about the media reports of talks between the US and Lithuania on the possible installation of anti-missile bases," Mr Medvedev's diplomatic...

The State Duma has called on Lithuania to end what it calls anti-Russian activity. It came after the U.S. suggested the former Soviet republic could become a base for its planned anti-missile shield in Europe and also followed the adoption of a ban on the public display of all Soviet symbols - a move Russia describes as rewriting history. From Thursday, relics of the Soviet Union such as the hammer and sickle flag, the Soviet army uniform or the USSR's national anthem are forbidden in public. Lithuania says the new law gives them a chance to move on from what...

State Duma deputies warned Lithuania against agreeing to place U.S. missile defense sites on its soil, saying Wednesday that such a move could trigger a Russian military buildup in the region.

A senior Russian lawmaker warned yesterday that discussions between the US and Lithuania over co-operating on Washington's missile defence system "could not but provoke anxiety" in Moscow. Konstantin Kosachev, head of the international committee of Russia's lower house of parliament, said the development confirmed Russia's fears about the creation of a Baltic "grey zone", in which the US could deploy "serious" weapons close to its borders - in countries formerly part of the Soviet Union. Such concerns were part of the reason Russia last year suspended implementation of the Conventional Forces in Europe treaty, one of the cornerstones of the...

VILNIUS (Reuters) - Lithuania has held no talks on hosting a U.S. missile shield, but would consider the idea if Washington's negotiations with Poland failed and the Americans suggested it, officials said on Wednesday. Polish chief negotiator Witold Waszczykowski told Reuters on Tuesday the United States was already in talks with Lithuania. Diplomats say Washington has become exasperated by Warsaw's tough negotiating stance. "Only if no bilateral agreement was reached between Poland and the U.S. and an official proposal was sent to Lithuania would our country look at it with due attention and responsibility," Lithuania's Defense Ministry said.

The Hill of Crosses, hundreds of thousands of them, tightly packed and dating from about the 14th century, stands in the city of Siauliai, Lithuania, as a symbol of opposition to foreign occupation and persecution in the small Eastern European country. During the Soviet era, the communists tried to bulldoze and flood the sacred national site.  In Paterson, a framed photograph of the hill hangs in the basement of St. Casimir's Parish, a testament to the enduring national pride of the Lithuanian Catholic church, one of the city's last churches catering to the ethnic group for which it was...

Elderly Jews say they are outraged that Lithuania is pursuing them over their wartime role as anti-Nazi partisans Fania Branstovsky was just 20 when she joined the Jewish partisan movement fighting the Nazis in her home country of Lithuania. In the Vilnius ghetto, she and her fellow partisans carried out attacks against the occupying German forces. By the end of the war, almost her entire family — more than 50 people –— had perished at the hands of the Nazis. Yet now, over 60 years later, she is the one being branded unpatriotic, and is reportedly under investigation by Lithuanian...

With only a week remaining in their six-month tour in Iraq, soldiers from Lithuanian Contingent 10, Iron Wolf Brigade, faced a difficult choice. Two options remained following the news that the Lithuanian government had voted to extend the unit’s tour for two more months: the soldiers could volunteer for the extension or continue their redeployment. “Since they were already packed and I knew how difficult it would be, I chose to ask for volunteers to stay,” said Lt. Gen. Valdas Tutkus, Lithuanian Chief of Defense. Twenty-nine of the 40 soldiers in the platoon chose to continue the mission. “Without them,...

When we were last in eastern Europe, we almost made a sidetrack to Vilnius. We were enticed by Lithuania's fascinating history and rich cultural heritage. But mostly we just wanted to see their statue of Frank Zappa's head. Now, at last, Baltimore is taking a page from Vilnius' book. Thirteen years ago, a band of plucky Lithuanian intellectuals pooled their funds, solicited their friends, and built a bronze bust of the musical iconoclast. Saulius Paukstys, longtime president of a Zappa fanclub, even convinced authorities that the statue should be erected in downtown Vilnius, in front of the Belgian embassy. Zappa...

VILNIUS (AFP) - Lithuania on Friday threatened to block the start of EU talks with Russia, highlighting a series of disputes it has with its former Soviet overlord. "We looked at the proposal of the Slovenian presidency (of the EU) and we cannot accept it without reservations," Violeta Gaizauskaite, spokeswoman for Lithuania's foreign ministry, told AFP Friday. "We believe that not all our remarks were taken into account, so negotiations have to continue" within the 27-nation EU before Lithuania can approve talks with Russia, she said. "We cannot accept this proposal". Any EU member state can block talks between the...

FORWARD OPERATING BASE DELTA — The Wasit Provincial Reconstruction Team leader and 214th Fires Brigade commander briefed the Wasit Provincial Council last week on reconstruction efforts in the province. More than $38 million dollars have been spent on those efforts in Wasit province since Jan. 1, 2007 by Coalition forces and the PRT. “We have done a lot as a team, and it has been a team effort,” said Col. Peter Baker, the 214th FB commander, “but there is more to do so that essential services are available to all. “We are working on developing processes and systems to put...

PEORIA - This weekend figures to be a busy one for those involved with military in the Peoria area. Forty Marine reservists from Company C, 6th Engineer Support Battalion are headed home this morning after seven months in Iraq. Then, at 9 a.m. Sunday, 60 Illinois Army National Guard members will leave Peoria and head to Indiana to begin training for a yearlong deployment to Kosovo as part of the NATO-led peacekeeping mission known as Kosovo Force 10 (KFOR10). In both cases, the public is welcome to attend the ceremonies but should arrive at least 30 minutes before. Parking might...

(VILNIUS) - European Union newcomer Lithuania on Saturday celebrated the 90th anniversary of The Act of Independence, that re-established Lithuanian state after more than a century of Russian occupation. "Today is a special day, we look at it with pride, it inspires us with fortitude," Lithuanian President Valdas Adamkus said at a special ceremony in parliament in the capital Vilnius. "It was exactly 90 years ago, when the Lithuanian nation achived the right to freely create its future and to build its own state" Adamkus added. Lithuania, which emerged as a state in the 13th century, was the largest country...

VILNIUS, Lithuania, Feb. 8, 2008 – NATO’s secretary general said today he is “cautiously optimistic” on the reconstruction and development fronts in Afghanistan. “When it comes to access to health care, infant mortality rates, education, women’s rights (and) economic growth, things are getting steadily better for the Afghan people,” Jaap de Hoop Scheffer said during a news conference at the alliance’s defense ministerial conference here, which Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates is attending. De Hoop Scheffer said this morning’s meeting, which included discussion of non-NATO nations supplying troops to the alliance’s International Security Assistance Force in Afghanistan, went very...

VILNIUS, Lithuania, Feb. 7, 2008 – Pakistan only recently has realized that terrorists on its border with Afghanistan pose a significant threat, Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates said during a news conference here today. Gates is participating in informal NATO defense ministerial meetings. While the ministers did not specifically discuss the situation in Pakistan, Afghanistan is a major item on the agenda, and reporters asked the secretary about the unrest in Pakistan. “It’s only been in the last few months, in my opinion, that Pakistan has come to realize that the situation along the border with Afghanistan … potentially represents...

VILNIUS, Lithuania, Feb. 7, 2008 – Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates said he was encouraged by his discussions on Afghanistan with NATO defense ministers during meetings here today. Gates is attending NATO’s informal defense ministerial conference. The meeting will help set the stage for NATO’s summit of heads of state in Bucharest, Romania, in April. The secretary said he emphasized to the defense ministers that the U.S. decision to send 3,200 Marines to Afghanistan is a one-time measure. The deployment is “intended to help prevent any surge of violence in the spring,” the secretary said. The move is in the...

VILNIUS. Nov 16 (Interfax) - Russia will not resume oil shipments to Lithuania on the Druzhba pipeline, Lithuanian newspaper Lietuvos rytas reported on Friday. "It is not economically viable for Russian companies to invest in the pipeline that has broken down, Industry and Energy Minister Viktor Khristenko told Lietuvos rytas at an energy conference in Rome," the newspaper said. "Fixing the broken pipeline on which oil is delivered to Lithuania makes no economic or other sense. The companies are carrying out their export plans on the Baltic Pipeline System - the system is exporting 45 million tonnes of oil a...

The signs of Russia’s resurgent influence are everywhere in Lithuania, Estonia and Latvia: in Kremlin-financed media; in the financing of local politicians and economic development; in a growing assertiveness, encouraged by Moscow, among the third of the Baltic population that is of Russian heritage; in the Kremlin’s manipulation of its energy supplies as a bludgeon. These tactics — especially the use of Russian cash — have evoked stress in the Baltics that was unthinkable even five years ago. “What we are afraid of is the very huge money that comes from Russia that can be used to corrupt our officials,”...

Five ex-communist countries sign oil pipeline deal bypassing Russia by Jonathan Fowler 1 hour, 50 minutes ago VILNIUS (AFP) - Five former communist-bloc countries signed a deal Wednesday to extend an oil pipeline that bypasses Russia, in a move that could diversify supplies and cut Moscow's energy clout. ADVERTISEMENT The presidents of Azerbaijan, Georgia, Poland, Ukraine and host nation Lithuania looked on as government ministers and state oil company bosses inked an accord creating the "Sarmatia" consortium, which is to build the new network. Most ex-communist countries -- and much of the rest of Europe -- rely heavily on energy...

TALLINN - Doudou Diene, the United Nations special rapporteur on contemporary forms of racism, racial discrimination, xenophobia and related intolerance, has recommended that Estonia move toward a multilingual society with more than one official language. Diene, who is drawing up a report on the Baltic states due to be delivered next year, told reporters Sep. 28 that Estonia should move toward a multicultural and multilingual society. "The requirement to be able to speak Estonian is normal," said the Senegalese, adding that all Estonian citizens had to be able to speak the language. At the same time, the special rapporteur added...