Prime Minister: we fooled ourselves negotiating peace with those who want war
Prime Minister Ingrida Šimonytė has taken part in an international conference on Russia and China’s joint attempts to influence institutions in democratic states.
‘This past week has been brutal in many ways. Not just for Ukraine. But for all of us who are blessed to be just the spectators, at least so far. Our generation has hoped to never witness an open, full-scale, and brutal war in Europe. Now it is unfolding right before our eyes, at our doorstep. We wake up and go to bed with a TV coverage of massive explosions in the residential areas of Kharkiv, Mariupol, Kyiv... With the images of ruined houses and schools on the streets that some of us have walked. And of awfully quiet women, children, and the elderly – sheltering underground”, said the Prime Minister.
Ingrida Šimonytė has shared that it is hard to shake off the resentment that it takes so much innocent blood to realise that authoritarian regimes are like a contagion.
‘We must admit the painful truth. We tolerated dictatorships as long as they did not interfere with our desire for a comfortable life. We trusted that economic ties would civilise authoritarian regimes. We fooled ourselves attempting to engage in dialogue with pathological liars and negotiate peace with those who want war’, emphasised the Head of Government.
According to the Prime minister, we in Lithuania have kept warning that dictators only understand the language of brutal power – economic, or better yet, military. Anything other than that they see as a sign of weakness that encourages, not deters them. They see appeasement as a licence to kill. We have been shouting out loud about growing security threats not just to our region but to the EU and NATO.
Today, we can celebrate that the democratic world is more united than ever. But the brutality of the Kremlin and the heroism of the Ukrainian people have finally awoken the West.
According to the Prime Minister, awakening is not enough. We must continue, increase, and expedite lethal aid to Ukraine. We must disconnect not some but all Russian banks from SWIFT to achieve full effect of sanctions NOW – not after a year. All the economic sanctions we introduce on Russia must be introduced on Belarus too. We must cut off Russia’s energy supplies to the West.
Today, Ukrainians are not alone in fighting the remnants of the USSR that Putin attempts to resurrect. Ukraine is not alone in protecting its sovereignty and the democratic world order. And it’s pushing back. Putin certainly did not expect this. I believe that the good can and will prevail over evil. I want to believe that when it does, we are able to look Ukrainians in the eye without guilt. Let’s do everything in our power today, not tomorrow - to make this happen, - said the Prime Minister.
The full address in english and in lithuanian.