Baltics Sever Russia’s Grip—For Good

Done

A giant countdown clock was installed in Vilnius, Lithuania, marking the time left for the Baltic nations to finally join the European power grid. EU chief Ursula von der Leyen arrived in Vilnius yesterday to celebrate the momentous occasion. The day had come—the three Baltic states were cutting Russia out of their future.

To unplug from Russia and plug into Europe.

A dream that started back in 2004. But severing the grid from Russia and fully integrating with the EU was no easy task. The three Baltic nations stopped buying electricity from Russia just months after Putin invaded Ukraine, yet their power lines remained deeply entangled with Russia’s. That meant Moscow still controlled the balance of supply.