Lithuania celebrates 29 years of restored independence

VILNIUS - Lithuania celebrates on Monday the 29th anniversary of restoration of independence. 

The Seimas will hold a solemn sitting to mark the historic separation from the Soviet Union and marches, free excursions and concerts will take place across the country. 

The flags of the three Baltic states will be hoisted in a ceremony in Independence Square in front of the parliament building in Vilnius at noon.

The ceremony will be followed by a parade during which a 400-meter-long Lithuanian tricolor will be carried from Independence Square along Gedimino Avenue up to Cathedral Square.

Lithuania's second-largest city of Kaunas will hold a traditional solemn ceremony at the garden of the Vytautas the Great War Museum. 

Klaipeda will mark the Day of Re-establishment of Lithuania’s Independence with a festive event in Atgimimo Square.  

"This is a holiday where we always hear the singing revolution inspired by the hope of rebirth. It is a day when we feel proud of our nation and of Lithuania," President Dalia Grybauskaite said. 

"Won almost three decades ago, this victory reminds us every time that we can achieve the highest goals by mobilizing our determination and common will," she said.

Tautininkai (nationalists) plan to hold their traditional march in Vilnius in the afternoon. The march has in the past drawn criticism for being excessively nationalist.  

The Supreme Council of Lithuania on March 11, 1990 adopted the Act of the Re-Establishment of the State of Lithuania in a vote of 124 with six abstentions.