Sign in Subscribe
Video

On this day: Fireworks erupt as Russian occupation troops leave the Baltics

After 55 years and 8 days, the Nazi-Soviet Pact era was brought to a close on this day in 1994 as occupying troops exit Estonia and Latvia, exactly one year after leaving Lithuania.

Baltic Takes Editor
– 3 min read
On this day: Fireworks erupt as Russian occupation troops leave the Baltics
Well, this is actually 1993 when troops left Lithuania a year earlier.

It began with an agreement in 1939 between Hitler and Stalin to divide Europe into their spheres of influence, sparking the Second World War.

It ended in 1994 with the last Russian troops finally leaving Estonia and Latvia.

Here's a very short snapshot of how that final day unfolded. Watch the video on X, Bluesky, Threads, Facebook, and YouTube.

Yes, they packed up as much as they could and even looted fields on their way out. But the most important thing for everyone that day was that they were gone for good.

Here's the actual poster from 1994 for that concert in the video, held in what is now Tallinn's Freedom Square.

Across social media, many across the Baltics have been reflecting on 32 years free from occupation troops.

Well, 33 years to Lithuanians who managed to get them all out exactly one year earlier.

This was the real end of the Second World War, as explained by the Estonian Ministry of Defence.

"We had survived more than half a century of occupation and repression. We had restored our independence, and finally, the russian troops — responsible for so many crimes against our people — were no longer here."

As noted by Jonatan Vseviov, Secretary General of the Estonian Foreign Ministry, Russia kept trying to stall the withdrawal process although sustained local and international pressure succeeded in pushing them back.

Latvian Foreign Minister Baiba Braže reminded us of the need to pay this forward and continue to pressure Russia to leave not just Ukraine, but also Moldova and Georgia.

Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya, the democratically-elected leader of Belarus, also reflected on the anniversary, demanding that Russian troops also leave her country. She currently runs the country's United Transitional Cabinet from exile in Lithuania.

Last word goes to Darth Putin. Mystery indeed.

More like this