By JOAN WEEKS
Is Lithuania an equal among nations or less than equal?
This was the question posed by Alfonsas Eidintas, ambassador of Lithuania to the United States, to a capacity audience in the Mary Pickford Theater on June 15.
As a recognized expert on the secret protocols of the 1939 Molotov-Ribbentrop Pact, which absorbed Lithuania into the U.S.S.R., Ambassador Eidintas was well qualified to address the current security issues affecting Lithuanian relations with Russia. His lecture was sponsored by the European Division.
Reborn to independence in the aftermath of the collapse of the Soviet Union, Lithuania has charted a democratic free market course in the Western tradition, yet still finds its security, or lack thereof, in the Russian sphere of influence. "Recently, the premier of France declared that there are neither small nor large states on the continent, but only partners," said Mr. Eidintas. He welcomed these remarks, but questioned their reality for Lithuania, given the historical record.
The envoy noted that during the past 50 years the West has had problems with the Baltic states, often relegating them to the status of a "former republic" of the Soviet Union. He did acknowledge, however, that the Western powers, with the United States in the forefront, never officially recognized Lithuania's forced assimilation into the Soviet Union.
Describing the special status of Russian troops in the Baltic countries, the ambassador paraphrased Orwell's Animal Farm, saying, "All states are equal but some are more equal than others."
[President Clinton underscored the importance of a Baltic peninsula free of Russian troops during a historic stopover in Latvia on his way to the G-7 economic summit in Naples. Although the administration had hoped agreement would be reached on an end-of-August timetable for troop withdrawal from both Latvia and Estonia, there are indications the deadline will pass with troops exiting only Latvia.
[Boris Yeltsin has resisted efforts to remove the remaining 2,500 troops in Estonia on the same schedule as those leaving Latvia. Several hurdles to overcome involve the right of residency in Estonia for retired Russian officers and the ability of troops to find housing when they return to Russia.
[For the peoples of the Baltic states, only complete Russian troop withdrawal will signal an end to their forced assimilation into the Soviet Union and their emergence as equal participants in the community of nations.]
Agreement must be reached on Russian troop withdrawal from Estonia and Latvia (troops are already out of Lithuania), as well as the issue of Russian military units taking a shortcut across Lithuanian territory to reach their bases on the Baltic in the Russia's separate Kaliningrad District.
"We feel at least temporarily we have been left in a no- man's land, together with the other Baltic states," said Ambassador Eidintas. Straddling the European Union and the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS), Lithuania is negotiating a packet of 10 agreements with Russia, including a most-favored-nation trade treaty, yet wants to be more involved in the voluntary economic integration of Western Europe.
In the military arena, Lithuania sees integration in a positive light if it results in a free choice of participants rather than coercion by outsiders. "In the West, we find NATO a free association of independent, sovereign states we would like to be a part of," Mr. Eidintas said. "To the East we see a newly formed military bloc under the auspices of the CIS with combat- ready units stationed less than 20 miles from Vilnius, our capital. From one side, we are offered a `partnership.' From the other, we are viewed as part of a `near abroad' [territory]."
Following Russian troop withdrawal from Lithuania, agreements were close to ratification between the two countries in November 1993 when last-minute changes relating to Russian troop transit to and from the Kaliningrad District were added by Russia. "Difficulties in economic and trade relations between Lithuania and Russia were again raised in a letter from [Lithuanian] President Brazauskas to [Russian] President Yeltsin," said Mr. Eidintas. "President Yeltsin replied that implementation of economic and trade agreements are tied to the issue of Russian military transit through Lithuania."
According to the ambassador, the best scenario for the Kaliningrad District would be a transformation from a heavy concentration of military force in the area to an economic free zone on the Baltic Sea, yet Russia's plans to build a new base and create a `special defense zone' point to the opposite and are cause for worry.
"Today we are forced to reckon with the fact that the Kaliningrad District is the most militarized zone in all of Europe," Mr. Eidintas claimed. "The number of Russian troops in Kaliningrad is rising, with the deployment of Russian military garrisons from Germany and Poland to the Kaliningrad District."
Russian efforts to impose punitive customs duties on Lithuania to gain leverage have resulted in a dramatic decline in trade between the two countries. Although Lithuania is still dependent on Russia for gas and petroleum, an oil terminal on the Baltic -- when completed and combined with an oil processing facility -- will pave the way for true Lithuanian economic independence.
To improve security in the region, Lithuania has joined Estonia and Latvia in the NATO-modeled Baltic Peacekeeping Battalion and has clearly indicated its desire for membership in the Western alliance. Lithuania has joined the "Partnership for Peace Program," hoping to become a full member of NATO in the future. Regional accords with Poland and Ukraine have also resulted in stabilizing the area.
"It is my hope that George Orwell was wrong and the premier of France is right," he concluded.
Joan Weeks is a public affairs specialist for the Library's National Reference Service.