Peter S.,

You are right, understood and the Netherlands are hereby forgiven ;-)

The situation from March 11th 1990 until Aug 1991 was very strange. Jeltsin's Russia including Moscow city backed Lithuania, but Gorbatchov's USSR did not.

The Supreme Council of the _Republic of Lithuania_ invited members of foreign parliaments while the USSR embassies abroad issued visas. The USSR foreign passports were in fact used by Lithuanian citizens as late as in 1992. What Lithuania did not fully control was first of all her borders. Several custom officers and Lithuanian border police men were killed by the USSR armed forces (most of all the OMON force) during these months.

I should also mention that Sweden opened her embassy in Vilnius already on 30th Aug 1991. Then Sweden's de facto ambassador to Lithuania had been working in Vilnius for several months! A lot of other Western organisation was also on place inside Lithuania. The Russians had in fact no other chose than to behave as masters in the republic, but I question very much how much they were. Even quite many of the colonists were already then on Lithuania's side.

What I had in mind is that according to my impression history in future are checking the country's own data. Lithuania is claiming that the country's independence was on 16th February 1918 - no matter what anybody else think or have in mind. The national day is on this same day. Most encyclopedias quite the same day etc. March 11th is almost forgotten in Lithuania, because we in fact have not less than three national days: Feb 16 (Independence 1918), Mar 11 (Re-declaration 1990) and July 6 (King's crowning 1253).

Norway got independence from Sweden on June 7th 1905, but nobody celebrates that. Norwegians regard that Norway was founded in 872 AD (exact date not important!!) – and that's it!

Jan