Lithuania and Estonia have accused the Kremlin of spreading misleading information regarding the deportation of Russian speakers from the Baltic states, aiming to divert attention from its extensive assaults on Ukrainian cities and civilian infrastructure.
Lithuania, Latvia, and Estonia have each called in Russian diplomats, blaming Moscow for circulating deceitful narratives about the Baltic nations amid escalating missile and drone offensives targeting Ukraine.
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The Baltic states maintain that allegations about planned mass deportations of Russian speakers, along with claims that Ukraine used their airspace to strike Russia, are tactics employed by the Kremlin.
Officials from Estonia and Lithuania informed Euronews that Russian Foreign Ministry representative Grigori Lukyantsev’s deportation accusations serve Moscow’s agenda to cast Russia as a victim, thereby deflecting scrutiny from its actions in Ukraine.
«Russia is urgently attempting to shift focus away from its assault on Ukraine and simultaneously depict itself as a victim to evade accountability for its crimes,» Lithuania’s Foreign Ministry stated to Euronews.
Meanwhile, Estonia accused Moscow of seeking to obscure «Russia’s own grave breaches of international law, including the forced relocation and deportation of Ukrainian children,” according to Estonia’s foreign ministry spokesperson Susan Lilleväli in an interview with Euronews.
Lithuania categorically denied the claims regarding deportation plans of Russian-speaking residents, calling them «completely unfounded,» while Latvia emphasized that all individuals within its borders enjoy legal protection regardless of their ethnic background.
Estonian Foreign Minister Margus Tsahkna dismissed Russia’s allegations, affirming that Estonia is «a democratic nation ruled by law» and labeling the claims as «baseless Russian propaganda.»
Lukyantsev’s statements followed the release of a joint human rights report by the Belarusian and Russian Foreign Ministries, which accuses the Baltic states of «Nazism» and «Russophobia».
The report also critiques amendments to Latvia’s Immigration Law that require Russian nationals to apply for EU long-term resident status, pass tests in Latvian at A2 level, and undergo security and background verifications to maintain legal residency.
Approximately 30,000 people have been affected by these requirements, with most complying successfully.
Such allegations mirror established Kremlin rhetoric about the Baltic countries.
The Lithuanian intelligence services’ 2026 Threat Assessment notes that Russia «regularly» accuses Lithuania, Latvia, and Estonia of oppressing Russian speakers, glorifying Nazi collaborators, and distorting the history of World War II.
The document highlights the Russian Foreign Ministry’s role in amplifying these narratives via diplomatic means and international organizations to legitimize Moscow’s foreign policy and pressure the Baltic states.
The diplomatic protests were further prompted by claims from Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Mikhail Galuzin that the Baltic countries permitted air corridors for Ukrainian drones striking Russian civilian facilities.
Latvia’s foreign ministry condemned Galuzin’s remarks as “blatantly false” in an official statement and demanded Russia “immediately withdraw this misinformation.”
Lithuania and Estonia similarly stated that their territories and airspace have never been utilized for drone attacks within Russia.
The diplomatic dispute unfolded as Russia executed another series of missile and drone attacks on Ukraine.
In formal notes to Moscow, the three Baltic states condemned the fresh wave of Russian missile and drone strikes against Ukraine.
The governments cited recent attacks on Kyiv and other locations, which caused dozens of civilian deaths and injured hundreds, asserting that Russia is intensifying its campaign against civilian targets.
Lithuania declared that the intentional targeting of civilians and civilian infrastructure breaches international humanitarian law and constitutes war crimes. It vowed to persist in holding accountable all perpetrators of offenses committed during Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
Russian President Vladimir Putin and other Kremlin officials have repeatedly accused Ukraine of Nazism and systemic Russophobia without releasing supporting evidence.
Putin has invoked these allegations as justification for the full-scale invasion of Ukraine in early 2022.