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Laima Andrikienė: ‘Thirty years on, Iceland’s decision to recognise the restored state of Lithuania continues to serve as an example of the fight for freedom and solidarity’

Press release, 11 February 2021

 

‘On 11 February 1991, the distant Republic of Iceland recognised the restored state of Lithuania, thus becoming particularly close to every Lithuanian and every peace-loving person. The will of this small Nordic country to recognise Lithuania represents an unforgettable support of a free, peace-loving nation to another nation, which, having broken free from the grip of the fifty-year-long occupation, had made an irreversible decision to pursue the path of restored statehood and democracy’, said Laima Liucija Andrikienė, Deputy Chair of the Seimas Committee on European Affairs, Signatory to the Act of Independence (11 March).

Photo by Olga Posaškova, Office of the Seimas

 

The Signatory noted that we were marking the 30th anniversary of the Icelandic recognition of Lithuania’s independence this year. ‘Today, however, it would be difficult to even imagine the effect the news from Iceland made on us back in 1991. Joy, pride and relief were the feelings we all experienced at hearing the news,’ Laima Liucija Andrikienė said.

‘Less than a year after the declaration of the restored independence, while the whole world and its leaders were still worshipping Mikhail Gorbachev, the Soviet Communist party leader, and his policy of perestroika, we, in Lithuania, had to face the tragic events of January 1991 that, in fact, opened the eyes for many in the world. On 9 February of the same year, Lithuania held a plebiscite, during which the Lithuanian population had to answer the following question: “Are you in favour of Lithuania’s becoming an independent, democratic republic?” The turnout was striking as 2.25 million citizens with the right to vote (out of 2.6 million) came to the ballot boxes, with 90 % of them voting in favour of an independent and democratic Lithuania. This opened the way for international recognition of Lithuania, with Iceland becoming the first country to hear about this development and offer support to us,’ the Signatory recalled.  

‘Takk, Ísland! – Thank you, Iceland!’ We have been sending our gratitude to the Icelandic nation for three decades now. Behind this historic decision holding crucial importance for Lithuania and the world, however, there are some specific people in the first place to thank, notably Jón Baldvin Hannibalsson, Icelandic politician and diplomat, and the then Foreign Affairs Minister of Iceland. Thank you, Jón Baldvin Hannibalsson. Since 11 February 1991, you have permanently gone down in the history of Lithuania,’ Andrikienė emphasised.

 

Aldona Drėgvaitė, tel. +370 612 15698, e-mail: [email protected]

   Last updated on 04/13/2021 13:49
   Monika Kutkaitytė