Lithuania names road leading to Russian embassy ‘Ukrainian Heroes’ Street’

‘The business card of every employee of the Russian embassy will be decorated with a note honouring Ukraine’s fighting,’ says mayor of Vilnius

A worker fixes street plates in Lithuanian and in Ukrainian languages reading "Ukrainian Heroes Street" (AFP via Getty Images)

Lithuania’s capital, Vilnius, has given a new address to the Russian embassy in the country, renaming the street where it is located as “Ukrainian Heroes’ Street”in protest of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

The mayor of Vilnius, Remigijus Simasius, said “the business card of every employee of the Russian embassy will be decorated with a note honouring Ukraine’s fighting, and everyone will have to think about the atrocities of the Russian regime against the peaceful Ukrainian nation when writing this street name.”

Up until Wednesday, the Russian embassy’s address was taken from the nearby Latvian Street. This street’s name remains unchanged. However, a nameless smaller road leading straight to the embassy has now been given a name to honour Ukraine.

Mr Simasius announced the plan for a new street name last week and on Wednesday workers put up two new street signs. One of them is written in Ukrainian and the other in Lithuanian. The former is also coloured in blue and yellow, the same way as the Ukrainian flag.

This is not the first time Lithuania has tried to send a message to Russia using signs and symbols.

In 2018, a square in the capital city was renamed Boris Nemtsov, a prominent opposition figure who was gunned down near to the Kremlin by unknown assailants.

Neighbouring Baltic state Latvia has also made use of this tactic and the capital Riga agreed last week to rename the Russian embassy’s address there to “Independent Ukraine Street.”