Budrys highlights false Russian narratives and the instrumentalisation of national minority issue to the OSCE High Commissioner

On 18 May, Minister of Foreign Affairs Kęstutis Budrys met with Christophe Kamp, High Commissioner on National Minorities of the Organisation for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE). The Minister and the High Commissioner discussed the false narratives spread by Russia and the instrumentalisation of the issue of national minorities.

"Russia consistently spreads false narratives about alleged discrimination against Russian-speakers in Lithuania, other Baltic states, and Ukraine. This is done in order to justify its aggression and incite national discord in the region. Tackling such disinformation campaigns requires strengthening societal resilience and awareness and finding ways to prevent attempts by foreign states to manipulate information," the Minister stressed.

Budrys assured that Lithuania consistently implements international human rights obligations to ensure the rights of representatives of national minorities living in Lithuania.

The Minister also expressed concern about Russia's rewriting of history and the destruction of the memory of victims of the Soviet totalitarian regime. Recent cases of dismantling of memorials honoring victims of Soviet repression in Russia were discussed, as well as the Kremlin's active 'anti-Nazi' narrative to justify its aggression against Ukraine and to discredit the states in the region.

The Minister drew the Commissioner's attention to the constantly deteriorating situation for national minorities in Russia itself, such as restrictions on their cultural identity, language, and rights, and the disproportionate targeting for mobilisation in the war of aggression against Ukraine and the repression of different ethnic communities.

During the meeting, the Minister also thanked the High Commissioner for his attention to the risks of instrumentalisation of national minorities for political purposes and for his professional and balanced approach to the sensitive issues of national minorities in the region.