Medvedev says Lithuania could ‘disappear from the map of the world’

Dmitry Medvedev warned Lithuania that it could "disappear from the map of the world" if a military conflict with Russia were to occur, according to Russian media on September 11. The Russian Security Council Deputy Chairman made the dire threat during a visit to Russia’s Northwestern Federal District, which shares a border with Lithuania.

Medvedev’s warning came in response to Lithuania’s proposal to remove a constitutional clause that bans the deployment of nuclear weapons on its soil. He contended that NATO would not intervene to protect Lithuania if Russia struck in response to the deployment of nuclear weapons.

Medvedev emphasized that even if a battlefield was destroyed, no other nations would defend a country that had taken such a step. He also dismissed NATO’s Article 5, which outlines the alliance’s collective defense principle, as unlikely to be invoked because it would result in a "global catastrophe." The Kremlin spokesperson, Dmitry Peskov, echoed Medvedev’s threat, stating that Lithuania would be targeted by Russian nuclear weapons if NATO-aligned nuclear arms were placed on its territory.

The Lithuanian parliament had taken a preliminary step toward amending the Constitution in July, but changing the provision requires a vote by at least 94 out of 141 lawmakers in two separate sessions held at least three months apart.