VILNIUS - A report that Russia would unveil a new statue to Joseph Stalin on May 9 all but made President Valdas Adamkus' decision not to participate in the Victory Day celebrations, though Moscow city officials moved quickly to deny the information.
Oleg Tolkachov, a member of Russia's Federation Council, the upper house of Parliament, told the Echo Moskvy radio station last week that Moscow would erect a statue to Stalin, whom many Russians credit for winning World War II, at the Poklonnaya Gora memorial complex.
But Mikhail Solomentsev, a Moscow city spokesman, denied the statement, saying the city intended to erect a statue depicting four typical soldiers of the anti-Hitler coalition.
Lithuanian Ambassador to Russia Rimantas Sidlauskas still felt obligated to inquire at Russia's Foreign Ministry if the information could be confirmed. Adamkus has yet to make up his mind about whether to attend the WWII ceremonies, but Lithuanian politicians categorically opposed his participation should the unveiling of a Stalin statue be part of the events.
Adamkus' foreign affairs adviser, Edminas Bagdonas, admitted that such a monument would seriously affect the president's final decision.
Despite assurances from Moscow officials, there was a report that a monument to Stalin would appear in the Belgorod region, site of the Kursk tank battle 's the largest armor confrontation in warfare 's and another complex of sculptures, including one depicting Stalin, in Crimea. Both new monuments will reportedly be unveiled in May.
Despite whether reports over such monuments are true, many argue that Adamkus still shouldn't go to Moscow. They say it would be inappropriate for a Lithuanian president to stand in Red Square paying respect to a marching Russian army 's another symbol of Soviet occupation 's and listening to the Russian anthem with its Soviet melody.
The Lithuanian community in the United States, where Adamkus spent decades, is urging the president to refuse Vladimir Putin's invitation. Regina Narusiene, chairwoman of the community's council, said a visit to Moscow would be an insult to the nation.
"War in Lithuania did not end in 1945, it continued until 1993 when the Russian army finally withdrew. We would insult the people that fought for, died and suffered for independence. This isn't our celebration and it's time to show that we are not weak, but have principals," she said.
Former political prisoners and partisans, who fought in Lithuania's forests 10 years after the fall of Berlin, are also asking the president not to go.
Many political observers agree.
"Why can Russia defend its historical truth or lies 's such as the denial of Lithuanian occupation, for instance 's and Lithuania has to forget its painful past, close its eyes when the wrong-doer denies it? Can we call this a solid pragmatic victory against poor patriotism? Our strength is that we have a moral right to raise the painful questions, and we do raise them," said Mindaugas Vinkus, a political observer.
Opposition Parliamentary parties suggested that respect for WWII victims should be paid on May 8 in Lithuania, meaning that Adamkus would no longer be obligated to attend the celebration in Moscow.
When asked, Prime Minister Algirdas Brazauskas did not take a stand on the dilemma.
"In my opinion, a decision on the issue has to be made by the president. He should not be pressured. Upon assessing the situation, he will decide what he should do," the prime minister told Ziniu Radijas on Jan. 25. "I am not an adviser. I don't want to discourage the president from making decisions that he has to make himself."
At the same time many recognize that rejection would raise eyebrows in Europe and leave Lithuania open to criticism of cooperating with the Nazi regime. Worse, they fear a decision to stay home would force Lithuanian officials to explain themselves to their European colleagues.
"The West, having condemned the Nazis, forgot to condemn communism and once again took the bait [by accepting Putin's invitation]," said Tomas Venclova, a famous Lithuanian intellectual.
"Demonstratively rejecting the celebration, we would be accused of falling for Nazi Germany 's the only ones in the world mourning for Hitler. We know this is not true, only demagogical accusations, but it would be hard to deny them, and the Lithuanian image would be seriously damaged," he said.
It is clear that the absence of Lithuania and Estonia (Latvia's Vaira Vike-Freiberga has agreed to go to Moscow) would encourage anti-Baltic propaganda from Moscow. Some European countries would be disappointed to see that the Baltic states missed a chance to soothe bilateral relations with Russia.
And now that Russian officials are hinting they might admit to the repercussions of the Molotov-Ribbentrop pact of 1939, they are leaving little choice for Adamkus, chairman of Parliament's foreign affairs committee Justinas Karosas said.
"It seems like Russia is intentionally [acting] so that the minuses of the trip outweigh the pluses, so on the scale of this planned event, our top-level participation becomes practically impossible," he said.
Fact sheet:
Although invited, Baltic leaders did not attend the 50th anniversary of the war
Poland, the Czech Republic, and Hungary will attend the celebrations in Moscow although the war for them also ended in 1990
Dutch Prime Minister Jan Peter Balkenende congratulated the Latvian President's decision to attend
