Baltic Roundup: September 2023

September 2023

Street art created as a tribute to the historical memory of the Vilnius Jewish community. Source: "Walls that Remember" Project, neakivaizdinisvilnius.lt

Dear readers, 

This September, Lithuania marked the 80th anniversary of the liquidation of the Vilnius Ghetto in 1943. Ninety percent of Lithuania's Jewish population was killed in the Holocaust. Faina Kukliansky, chairwoman of the Jewish Community in Lithuania, called for the history to be remembered, not just commemorated.

POLITICS

Evika Siliņa was confirmed as Latvia's new prime minister on Sept. 15. Siliņa leads a center-left coalition, including her New Unity party, the Progressives, and the Union of Greens and Farmers (ZZS). The coalition said their immediate goals include ratifying the Istanbul Convention and passing a civil partnership law. In an early test of the new government, Anda Čakša, minister of education and science, survived a no-confidence vote called for by Ainars Šlesers' Latvia First party over sex education curriculum touching on LGBT+ issues.

Lithuania's Seimas convened its autumn session. As elections approach in 2024, pressure is on for the ruling coalition to pass key legislation, including a same-sex partnership bill. 

Estonian Prime Minister Kaja Kallas remains in her post following a scandal involving her husband's business interests in Russia. Two-thirds of those surveyed remain in favor of her resignation. In the Riigikogu, MPs voted down opposition efforts to form a committee to investigate the scandal.

ZZS deputies don't plan to break with Latvian oligarch Aivars Lembergs after an appeals court upheld the former Ventspils mayor's conviction for bribery, money laundering, and other corrupt activities. The party's ties to Lembergs were a sticking point during efforts to expand the coalition. 

Some 40 members have exited Estonia's Center party following the election of Tallinn mayor Mihhail Kõlvart as party chair. Some high-profile leaders defected to Isamaa. There is speculation that the party may be polarizing into "Russian" and "Estonian" camps. Political scientist Martin Mölder points to the party's consolidation in Tallinn and Ida Viru county. 

SECURITY

Estonia and Latvia signed a deal worth $1.1 billion to acquire a German IRIS-T SLM medium-range air defense system, a record-breaking defense investment. Estonia's recently passed budget will increase defense spending to more than 3% for the first time, half of which focuses on procurements. 

On the borders, Lithuania reported that irregular migration increased 20-fold through neighboring Latvia. Cars with Russian license plates were banned from entering the EU via the Baltic countries. And border guard services report that some 4,500 Russian citizens have been turned away since entry restrictions were implemented in the Baltic states last year.

Latvian public media is firmly opposed to the intent to end support for Russian-language content by 2026, as outlined in Latvia's National Defense Concept, approved on Sept. 28. Latvijas Radio un Latvijas Televīzija called the proposal "shortsighted and diametrically opposed to the stated goals — to strengthen the safety of the information space." Former Minister of the Interior Marija Golubeva called it a "mistake." Also, some Russian citizens set to lose their residence permits were granted a temporary reprieve after the Saiema passed amendments allowing extra time to pass Latvian language tests.

In the Baltic Bulletin, read up on defense and Nordic-Baltic takeaways from the NATO Vilnius Summit.

Meduza reports that Russia is systematically dismantling memorials to Polish, Lithuanian, and Finnish victims of Soviet Terror. In the latest episode of Baltic Ways, Margaret Comer discusses dark heritage and memory building in Estonia.

CLIMATE

September broke temperature records across the Baltic states and in other European countries. In Estonia and Latvia, draft climate laws have recently been proposed aiming to cut down on shale oil production and greenhouse gas emissions, though they are not without controversy. 

SOCIETY & ECONOMY

More than 2,000 teachers and school staff went on strike in Lithuania — some walking from their schools to the capital. Educators are bracing for a month-long protest in response to the government proposal to increase salaries by 21% over two years. The Lithuanian Trade Union of Educational Workers is seeking a 56% increase in teachers’ salaries, among other concessions. In Latvia, schools are one month into teaching exclusively in Latvian.

In Estonia, the mean gross monthly wage rose 12.4% in Q2 of 2023. Lithuania reported a fourth consecutive month of falling prices, though the impact on most households is minimal. The Bank of Latvia released its September economic forecast, which is less optimistic than in June, expecting annual inflation to be higher and growth to be lower but still in positive territory. 

Birth rates across the Baltic states are falling. In the first seven months of the year, Latvia registered 14% fewer newborns than the previous year, while in Lithuania, the drop was 11% and in Estonia — 8%. Declining demographic trends are not new, but Russia's war in Ukraine may also be having an impact.

In a Baltic sibling rivalry, Latvia's basketball team bested Lithuania to take fifth place in the FIBA Basketball World Cup. 

Aitäh, paldies and ačiū,

Indra Ekmanis
Baltic Bulletin Editor

CALL FOR ARTICLES 
 

FPRI invites article contributions for the Baltic Bulletin. We are particularly interested in pieces covering NATO, support for Ukraine, cybersecurity, and domestic politics. We welcome pitches at iekmanis@fpri.org.

RESEARCH HIGHLIGHTS

NATO Vilnius Summit: Defense Takeaways for the Baltic States

"After facing years of dilemmas with regard to Russia, the allies agreed to bolster NATO's enhanced Forward Presence (eFP) battlegroups and established brand-new defense plans."

The Vilnius NATO Summit Brings Opportunities for Closer Nordic-Baltic Integration
Otto Tabuns

"For Euroatlantic Baltic Sea security, Swedish and Finnish accession to NATO is more of a capstone of existing collaboration, rather than a significant change."

Dark Heritage: Exploring Memory Building in Estonia

How do we remember tragedies? How do populations construct memories and memory institutions around these events? How can contemporary researchers begin to make sense of these complex landscapes? Dr. Margaret Comer of University College London joins on this episode.

Listen on Apple Podcasts

Catch up on recent episodes of the Baltic Ways podcast.
New episodes are coming in October!