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Lithuanian history – the bloody events in Vilnius of January 1991. It
concentrated on a conspiracy theory that argues that it was the activists in the
Lithuanian independence movement, Sąjūdis, and not the OMON (Soviet
Ministry of Interior special police forces) soldiers who started shooting at the
crowd and the Soviet military. This theory has also been put forward by the
Lithuanian politician, Algirdas Paleckis. The film created a wave of fury in
Lithuanian society, but it was local media companies and not the regulatory
institutions that reacted first. The television cable network company, Cgates,
suspended PBK transmissions on its network and some advertisers suspended
campaigns on the channel. This could be interpreted as a serious shift by the
Lithuanian media business community when dealing with what amounts to
Russian media attacks in the Lithuanian information environment. The
aggressive tactics of the Russian media backfired, and Lithuanian media
companies began to view Russian media productions as a serious risk to their
business reputation.
5.5 Energy Security Dilemmas and Economic
Pressure
The strong Russian position in the Lithuanian information sphere and the
Kremlin’s Compatriots Policy create highly favourable conditions for Russian
soft power in Lithuania. On the other hand, the contemporary Russian regime
also practices non-military power policy in spheres such as oil, gas and
electricity. This aspect of Russian foreign policy in the Baltic states has been
analysed extensively in a recent study by Agnia Grigas. 435 Although Lithuania
was formally included in the political geography of the EU and NATO in 2004, it
is still dependent on Russian oil pipelines, gas supplies and energy grids, and
Russia is eager to use and abuse this tool of influence. It has stepped up its
pressure and started to invest in new energy markets: local heating utilities and
even green energy. 436
Lithuania’s dependency on Russia in the energy sector takes several forms:
Until recently, Russian was the only option for Lithuania. It was also
dependent on a single gas transit system owned by Lietuvos dujos. Until
June 2014, the major shareholders in this company were Gazprom,
E.ON Ruhrgas and the Lithuanian state through the state-controlled
company group Lietuvos Energija UAB. However, after that date,
Lietuvos Energija became the only major shareholder, giving the
Lithuanian state full control of its gas transit system. On 21 August,
435 Grigas, A. (2013): The Politics of Energy and Memory between the Baltic States and Russia,
London: Ashgate Publishing.
436 See http://www.ekonomika.lt/naujiena/inter-rao-isigijo-vejo-jegainiu-parka-lietuvoje-10357.html.
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