Russians are unlikely to sign a document condemning the country’s actions in Ukraine in order to enter Lithuania, according to Svetlana Zhurova, First Deputy Chair of the State Duma Committee on International Affairs. She shared her comments with Lenta.ru.
Earlier, the Lithuanian Ministry of Foreign Affairs proposed requiring Russians to condemn Moscow’s policies in order to enter the country. “It is proposed that people who want to come to Lithuania (…) sign a declaration condemning Russian aggression against Ukraine,” the publication reported, citing the Lithuanian diplomatic ministry. Those who refuse to sign the document will be denied entry.
“While we were surprised by this at the beginning, now we probably simply understand that, when the rest of the world is starting to move away from all this, the Baltic countries continue to do it anyway. Lithuania, Latvia, and Estonia have passed laws that, among other things, force them to do this with regard to Russians. They won’t do anything else,” the deputy said.
In July, the Lithuanian president’s chief national security adviser, Deividas Matulionis, stated that there was currently no direct threat from Russia.