Lituanica

The Swedish Vice-PM Mrs. Olofsson visited Lithuania on 5-6 February.  The visit has attracted a wide Lithuanian media attention.  The reason for this attention was that the visit took place in the heated debates on the energy issues background.  The Law of the establishment of the National Investor the LEO LT passed the parliament few days before, there is an intensive debate about prolonging of the Ignalina Power Plant life span and a debate what will happen when (if) the plant will terminate its electricity production at the end of 2009.  Only a thought that the Ignalina provides 75% of all electricity in Lithuania and that Lithuania still has no electrical connections to the West raises the temperature in Lithuanian political scene.  Not to mention that the elections to Seimas will take place in October.In addition another important event took only a day before the Vice-PM’s visit.  Lithuanian Lietuvos Energija and its Swedish counterpart, Svenska Kraftnat, completed a feasibility study on linking the energy systems of the two countries. The heads of the two companies signed in Stockholm a memorandum stating their intentions to continue cooperation on the project on February 5.

The Nord Stream was also discussed.  The President’s press office stated that “Lithuania is particularly alarmed over the impact of the Baltic pipeline to the ecology of the Baltic Sea, therefore, we cannot come up with argumentation why the Amber Pipe project was not planned via the Baltics of territories of other EU members.”Furthermore, the press office informed that Mrs. Olofsson underscored that all matters relating to the ecology of the Baltic Sea required professional analysis and assessment. In her words, Sweden and its companies are willing to share their technological experience in generating energy from renewable sources and reduction of climate pollution.

Hence, the Swedish-Lithuanian energy cooperation is getting a shape and is intensifying, better later that never.  ‘Let’s get connected!’

The President of Lithuanian made a speech, during a dinner discussion on Russian and its neighbours in Davos.  The speech was made day after a controversial remark by the US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice  who noted  ‘Ladies and gentlemen, the recent talk about a new Cold War is hyperbolic nonsense.’

President Adamkus continued that ‘It is necessary to allow Russia define the level of its global responsibility itself and accordingly to define our relations with Russia. If Russia is seeking global responsibility and a global role, there are some benchmarks to be overcome:
- to withdraw troops from Georgia and Moldova, which is foreseen under the Istanbul Agreements;
- to ratify the Energy Charter;
- to follow the promises made when joining the Council of Europe;
- to follow intergovernmental agreements with other countries, including the Baltic States.’

Read all speech also watch and listen to the speech on the YouTube.

Lithuania is commemorating a day of Freedom defenders.  17 years ago the Soviet troops – the Pskov division and the KGB elite Alfa Special Forces attempted to crush the newly reborn Lithuanian state.  Some died from the shot wounds; the Soviet tanks crushed some.  In total 14 peaceful civilian freedom defenders lost their lives, hundreds more wounded.

The January 13 events are deeply ingrained in the Lithuanian’s hearts.  I would place this date to one of the most important events in the Lithuanian history.  I would call it Lithuania’s ‘Winter War’, which came some 50 years later.  Same like the Fins in 1939 decided to fight with the much larger enemy despite the fears that the Soviets swiftly will crush the resistance.

The Lithuanian Winter War in January 1991 was a crucial for the survival of our nation as the Žalgiris battle in 1410, as the Lithuanians fights against the Bolsheviks in 1920, as the Partisan War after World War two.  The January events as one Lithuanian commentator noted, materialised and institutionalised Lithuania’s freedom, which was declared in March 1990.

This day is a pride of Lithuania, and the probably the most important day in my life.  In this day a teenager turned into a responsible citizen of a free nation, who was ready to sacrifice his life for motherland and freedom.  I had a honour to be amongst thousands in the square in the front of the Parliament, listening to the creaking Soviet tanks coming after they already ‘done their duty for the Soviet motherland’ next to the TV tower. We heard what happened some hour ago in the front of the TV Tower, we new that the soldiers were using the real bullets; we knew that the tanks crushed the people.

At that moment a rumour had it that during the storm of the TV tower the Soviets killed hundreds of people.  And hence, we were waiting for those same Soviet solders to come to the square, shoot at us, crush us, and take away from us not only our lives but also our freedom.

Freedom from all of us in this square and from all in Lithuania; in the towns and villages who gathered to defend institutions which defined our statehood; the post offices, the TV and radio studios, the train stations, the municipality buildings.  All of us, teenagers who still went to the school, like myself, the pensioners, the students, the teachers, the factory workers, the bus drivers, all of us!

However, the Parliament was the heart of our statehood, the square around it was a human shield which had nothing just their love of freedom, motherland, believe, hope.  Our only weapon was against the Soviet tanks and the Kalashnikovs was our bear arms and our songs, which made a huge crowd as a one body. Your hear the squeak of the tanks, you feel the vibrating ground under your feet, you hear a pledge form the loudspeaker coming out of the Parliament urging the old, women and children to leave the square.  No one moves an inch.

You hear the voice of a priest Grigas, who gives to the people last redemption of signs.  Not to the soldiers who are given orders ‘take the parliament by all means’, but to the people whom those soldiers peppered to slaughter.  Then you hear voice from the loudspeaker to move away from the Parliament’s glass walls, since the falling glass will heart many.  Yes, we heard they the tanks were shooting while storming the TV tower.

Then you wait, hoping that by standing on this spot you will be an obstacle on the way of the solders and tanks that will storm the Parliament.  You, hope that maybe you will prolong Lithuania’s freedom for a tiny wee second.  You catch yourself thinking what you have done in your life, to whom you would like to apologies, to whom you would like to say thank you, or I love you, or I am sorry…  You and people around you are preparing yourself for a final sacrifice, final duty to your motherland…

This was the purest and the strongest feeling I have ever experienced.  It makes my eyes water when I return to those moments in January 13, 1991.  A miracle appeared – the soviet tanks stopped, the soldiers retuned to they barracks and the bloodshed was avoided.  A little nation became a big nation, the Soviet Empire collapsed.

I thank God and my destiny for giving me an opportunity to live through those honourable moments and perhaps understand what a freedom defender felt in the Baltic Forrest during the resistance to the Soviet occupation, or a simple Finish solder facing advancing numerous Soviet troops in the Winter War.  Long live momories of those fallen 14 heroes who sacrificed their lives in January 13, 1991.

Read more on Calr Bildt blog and in the Everyday’s Holiday blog        

Some developments took place on Friday that put some strain on the Lithuanian Polish ‘strategic partnership’.  As the Polish daily called it the ‘Polish EconMin is blackmailing Lithuania’.

The Polish EconMin Wozniak  was in Vilnius to take part in a seminar on cooperation in the process of integration of the Baltic energy system into UCTE.  However, at the press conference the Polish Minister stated that “All projects will go behind schedule unless we get 1200 MW of capacity. The minimum capacity that would, painfully, satisfy Poland would be 1000 MW and the normal capacity would be 1200 MW”.

Other key projects include an electricity link between Lithuania and Poland, which is necessary for Lithuania to be admitted to the common European energy system UCTE.Lithuanian official reaction was swift and resolute the Minister’s scheduled meetings with the President Adamkus and Lithuanian PM Kirkilas were called off on the Lithuanian initiative.

The PM’s office gave an official explanation that ‘”There is a lot of work to do, and the Prime Minister will depart to Ireland early next week. The meeting has been called off since the Cabinet shall complete the draft budget to be passed [to the parliament]“.  However, the PM attended a new German made train launch in Vilnius Train Station later on the day.

The President was more straight forward stating in the front of the cameras that ‘I have nothing to talk about with him (the Polish EconMin).’  The Lithuanian president, Adamkus, told journalists that he had discussed energy projects with his Polish counterpart last week and agreed on the necessity to complete the electricity bridge project.

As the BNS noticed Poland’s largest daily newspaper Gazeta Wyborcza described the event as an “atomic scandal in Vilnius”. According to the Polish daily, the power station should become “a symbol of harmonious cooperation between Poland and the Baltic states.”The daily said that Wozniak’s words drew sensitive and strong responses from Lithuanian President Valdas Adamkus and Gediminas Kirkilas who recalled their meetings with the Polish minister.

Gazeta Wyborcza said that Latvia and Estonia were originally against Poland’s participation in the construction of the power plant. “It was Lithuania that persuaded Latvia and Estonia to include the Poles in the project,” said the daily. Unlike Poland, Latvia and Estonia have made no categorical request as to their shares of the plant’s generation capacity.

On the other hand the leader of the Homeland Union (Concervatives)Kubilius said to the BNS that Lithuania is  “inflexible” and “ruining the negotiations.”  The politician noted that  “The negotiations are hard and hence call for some rigidness, but I should urge our politicians not to demonstrate their ambitions and ruin the negotiations”.

Furthermore  Mr Kubilius is convinced that “Poland’s demand are not entirely made up — building a link with Lithuania, it will be facing immense reconstruction of the interior grid and it is therefore natural that the Poles want to know the amount of power they will be getting and the throughput of the power lines that needs to be set up”.

On the other hand, the Director of the Energy Institute Mr Vilemas told the Lithuanian Business daily today that this Polish action only indicates that Poland would like to opt out from the project all together and is looking for an escape root.  Once again Mr Vilemas stated that the Baltic states could build the plant with Poland and that Lithuania should concentrate on the Power grid to Sweden.   

As the Lithuania’s migration department announced there are 450 refugees currently residing in Lithuania with permanent or temporary permits to live in the country.

Over the past ten years, over 4,000 applications for asylum from foreign individuals — 106 of them were given refugee status.  According to the same report some 400 individuals are enjoying or have been enjoying extra protection, which means that the person does not acquire refugee status but is not being extradited to their own country.As the coordinator of the United Nations’ chief commissioner of refugees in Lithuania Vladimiras Siniovas explained to the BNS that most of the applicants for refugee status are the Chechens.  They account for almost 80% of all applicants for asylum in Lithuania.

As the BNS reported the refugees from Afghanistan are ranking second, yet their migration to Lithuanian peaked in 1997-1999 — at this time, in Siniovas’ words, there are about 20 Afghans living in Lithuania. As of 2000, applicants for asylum have been dominated by Chechens.

According to the information available from the board of the United Nation’s chief commissioner of refugees, some 60 percent of all refugees in Lithuania are women and children.

Litunica is on holiday, it should resume posting next week.

A Lithuanian business daily Verslon Zinios published an interesting editorial on Russia‘s claim of Arctic.  Few passages from the editorial.

First of all the mini subs which planted the flag on the Arctic Sea bed  of the Ocean are called Mir-1 and Mir-2.  The daily notices that the Mir station was orbiting the Earth from 1986 until 2001.  It is also symbolic that the last Soviet citizen Cosmonaut Mr Krikaliov also flew in Mir station.  It happened that he took off still in the Soviet Union and landed already few months since the Soviet Union was a history.

The daily notices that the stories about claims of a territory in the Moon and in the Mars could be read in the ‘Various news’ sections but the Titanium flag on the Sea bed is a fact of life and this issue will be seriously discussed at the UN sessions and in the capitals of the world.  Once again, Russian has taken an initiative and is winning the PR war.

The editorial states that it looks as if the citizens of planet will not find a substituted to oil and gas in the nearest future not only Europe will be more dependent from the Russian energy resources, but the USA will follow the Europe’s fate.  That would be Putin’s sweet revenge on the USA for ‘buying off Alaska from Russia’.

It could only be added that the battle for Arctic only just begun.  Sine this is a battle for the energy recourses it could get very hot in the coldest Earth’s continent.  The Kremlin strategists should hope for a war in the Middle East, the European Union’s short sightness on the energy unity, and the acceleration of the Global worming.  The future is bright, the future is Arctic! 

Related article on the Edward Lucas blog.

 Ultra-triathlonist Vidmantas Urbonas resumed his swim across the Baltic Sea on Tuesday in the afternoon and reached the island of Gotland 2140 local time.  If the weather conditions will allow the sportsmen will resume his race to Latvia today. More on the race

Lituanica was an American research aircraft that crossed the Atlantic in 1933, and crashed exactly 74 years ago, under mysterious circumstances close to its destination, Kaunas, Lithuania.

Steponas Darius and Stasys Girėnas were Lithuanian pilots emigrant to United States, who made a significant flight in the history of world aviation. On July 15, 1933, they flew across the Atlantic Ocean, covering a distance of 3,984 miles (6,411 kilometers) without landing, in 37 hours and 11 minutes.In terms of comparison, as far as the distance of non-stop flights was concerned, their result ranked second only to that of Russell Boardman and John Polando, and it ranked fourth in terms of duration of flight at the time. Although Darius and Girėnas did not have navigational equipment, and flew under unfavorable weather conditions, the flight made by the airmen at that time was one of the most precise in aviation history. It equaled, and in some aspects surpassed, Charles Lindbergh’s classic flight. Lithuanica also carried the first Transtlantic air mail consignment in history.

After taking off from Floyd Bennett Field in New York on July 15, 1933, 6:24 AM EDT, Darius and Girėnas in their Lituanica successfully crossed the Atlantic, only to perish on July 17, 0:36 AM (Berlin Time) by the village of Kuhdamm, near Soldin, Germany (now Pszczelnik, Myslibórz area, Poland). The planned route was: New York - Newfoundland - Atlantic Ocean - Ireland - London - Amsterdam - Swinemünde - Königsberg - Kaunas (a total of 7,186 km). Due to weather conditions over Ireland, they changed course to the north and reached Germany via Scotland and the North Sea.

In 37 hours and 11 minutes, until the moment of the crash, they had flown 6411 km (over 7000 km in actual flight path), only 650 km short of their goal — Kaunas. On July 19, the German plane “Derluft”, carried the bodies of the pilots back to Lithuania. The people of Kaunas met the heroes, but in great sorrow.  The funeral was a very solemn occasion and was the cause of official national mourning.  Those heroes were inspirational figures to the generations of the Lithuanians, including the author of this blog.  

Read more on Wikipedia

New nuclear plant construction in Lithuania, which will help to reduce the Balic states’ energy dependence from Russia, has been holted, due to the Polish position.  The Poles, who are on the Lithuanian initiative are invited to participate in the project, showed disproval by ignoring the mini summit in Vilnius which was organized to sign the agreement between Poland and the Baltic states, on the 6^th of July.   

History should be remembered when Poland made every effort to sabotage every possible moves of the Baltic unity before WWII.  This led the Baltic States being solidly occupied by the USSR.  Of course, the historical circumstances on this part of the Baltics were different but still, we should learn from history.