On May 10, the Lithuania parliament voted unanimously to recognise Russia’s war against Ukraine as genocide and Russia as a terrorist state. What does it actually mean?
Read more: Lithuania recognises war in Ukraine as genocide, Russia as terrorist state
The document calls Russia’s actions in Ukraine genocide in reference to the massacres, rape and mass deportations of civilians carried out by Russian soldiers. It also mentions the Nuremberg, Tokyo, Sierra Leone, and other special tribunals and calls for an establishment of a special tribunal to investigate and prosecute the crimes of Russian aggression.
The document concludes by declaring that the Lithuanian parliament recognises that “the Russian Federation, whose military forces deliberately and systematically target civilian objects, is a state that supports and perpetrates terrorism”.
Alleged persecution
In response to the resolution, Russian MP Maria Butina said that ethnic Russians will now be prosecuted in Lithuania, repeating Kremlin's claims of alleged discrimination in the Baltic states.
“They are going to design their legislation in such a way as to find even more opportunities to prosecute our compatriots, ethnic Russians, for terrorism,” Butina told RIA Novosti.
According to Lithuanian MPs, who introduced the resolution, such an interpretation is unfounded.
MP Eugenijus Gentvilas of the Liberal Movement said fake messages of Lithuania persecuting Russians are being created and spread by Russian propaganda.
“The resolution has nothing to do with Russians and people of Russian nationality living in Lithuania. We all understand that the resolution is about the Russian Federation under [Vladimir] Putin’s regime, and that is all. What the Russian propagandists are saying is meant for their own audience,” he said.
Another MP Paulius Saudargas of the Homeland Union also stressed that the word “terrorism” refers to the actions of the Russian authorities, not the population.
“What else can you call it after it blows up an apartment building with civilians? This is an act of terror systematically carried out by the Russian armed forces. We stress that war crimes and crimes against humanity are being committed [...]. It is important to call a spade a spade,” Saudargas said.
“By adopting [the resolution] one parliament encourages others to take stronger action, to be more serious, to supply armaments [...]. The US Congress is planning to adopt similar wording, and there are other countries that are considering declaring Russia a state sponsor of terrorism,” he added.
Members of the US Congress have already introduced a resolution, calling on the Biden administration to recognise Russia as a terrorist state. The resolution seeks to add the Russian Federation to a list that includes North Korea, Iran, Syria, and Cuba.
The resolution list numerous examples of the activities that can be qualified as Russia‘s state-sponsored terrorism, such as those in Ukraine since 2014, as well as in Chechnya, Syria, and other countries.
According to the initiators of the resolution, the state terror designation would further efforts to penalise Russia for its invasion of Ukraine and would speed up the delivery of aid to the country. Lithuanian lawmakers, meanwhile, have used to resolution in their efforts to create a criminal tribunal to investigate Russian war crimes.
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