A pond near the Russian Embassy in Vilnius has been dyed red in protest of Moscow’s aggression in Ukraine.
The Lithuanian champion swimmer Rūta Meilutytė, who swam through the red-dyed pond, said in a tweet: “The performance ‘Swimming Through’ is a call for action in support of the Ukrainian people who are facing genocide committed by Russia.”
Julija Samorokovskaja, spokeswoman for Vilnius County Police, told BNS that the protest action had been coordinated with environmental protection authorities, adding that the dye was harmless.
Swimming Through
— Rūta Meilutytė (@MeilutyteRuta) April 6, 2022
The performance “Swimming Through” is a call for action in support of the Ukrainian people who are facing genocide committed by Russia. pic.twitter.com/LuXRFms2c4
Vilnius Municipality spokesman Paulius Vaitekėnas told BNS that the protest was an artistic performance to draw the world’s attention to Russia’s war crimes.
The crimson dye was similar to the one used to colour the River Vilnia on St Patrick’s Day, according to him.
Apart from Meilutytė, the authors of the protest performance are Berta Tilmantaitė, founder of the journalistic platform NARA, Neringa Rekašiūtė, and Aurelija Urbonavičiūtė.
Read more: War in Ukraine triggers collective trauma in Lithuania – opinion
On Monday, the Lithuanian government ordered the Russian ambassador to leave the country, downgrading diplomatic ties with Moscow.
Russia invaded Ukraine on February 24, sparking outrage and anger around the world.
Thousands of Ukrainians have been killed and several million have been forced to flee the war-torn country.
There are increasing reports of atrocities against Ukrainian civilians in areas that were under Russian military control.
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