History as a means of hybrid warfare? The impact of the ongoing war in Eastern Ukraine on historical and political discussions in Lithuania

ENThe events of the Euromaidan in Kyïv were followed by Lithuanian society not as distant news, but as a reflection of more general developments in the region lying between Russia and the EU. For many of Lithuania’s three million inhabitants, the subsequent annexation of Crimea triggered fears of Russian aggression in the Baltics. The ongoing war in the eastern part of Ukraine has already altered how the media reflects on 20th century Lithuanian history. After Lithuania took over the EU presidency in late 2013, the shadow of the war in Ukraine brought considerable change in Lithuanian politics. The intensive preparations for the EU presidency as well as the Euromaidan in Kyïv increased the sensitivity of Lithuanian society to external threats. After the annexation of Crimea by the Russian Federation, this feeling was intensified primarily by the practices of hybrid war being used in the Donbas region and beyond, accompanied by an ongoing propaganda war, directed at, among others, the Russian-speaking inhabitants of the Baltics.