>The crackdown of January 13, 1991, was what decisively ruined Gorbachev’s reputation in Lithuania. Soviet troops tried unsuccessfully to take control of key institutions in Vilnius, killing 14 people and injuring hundreds.
It is unclear who issued the order for Soviet tanks to leave their bases, but Lithuanians hold Gorbachev responsible.
“Gorbachev was the leader of the Soviet Union. Whether his power was real or not, he was the supreme commander of the armed forces. He should have, firstly, prevented it from happening, secondly, when it happened, he should have stopped it, and thirdly, and very importantly, once the blood had been spilled, he should have apologised,” says Juršėnas.
>On April 11, Georgian TV showed the bodies of the 19 women violently killed, demonstrating alleged brutality by the Soviet soldiers, as the faces of the deceased women were hard to identify due to the facial injuries and blows to the head
Face of Russian/Soviet imperialism is forever imprinted. Gorbachov was just lesser asshole Russian leader, very good for Russian measures, but still way below human.
I guess he will be always be a controversial figure, like Churchill.
The soviets taught eastern Europe to deal only in absolute – you can only be their enemy or their friend, nothing in-between.
So of course a complex figure like Gorbachec won’t be remembered fondly in a country like Lithuania. I totally understand that.
However, what makes me especially sad is that pseudo-historian calling Gorbachev a criminal. If you’re a historian, surely you can understand the complexity of the situation he was in. Yeah as the head of state he’s responsible. But he had to stop a 60-years-old murder machine. You can’t do that in an instant.
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>The crackdown of January 13, 1991, was what decisively ruined Gorbachev’s reputation in Lithuania. Soviet troops tried unsuccessfully to take control of key institutions in Vilnius, killing 14 people and injuring hundreds.
It is unclear who issued the order for Soviet tanks to leave their bases, but Lithuanians hold Gorbachev responsible.
“Gorbachev was the leader of the Soviet Union. Whether his power was real or not, he was the supreme commander of the armed forces. He should have, firstly, prevented it from happening, secondly, when it happened, he should have stopped it, and thirdly, and very importantly, once the blood had been spilled, he should have apologised,” says Juršėnas.
Do they not have Pizza Hut in Lithuania?
[Same in Georgia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/April_9_tragedy)
>On April 11, Georgian TV showed the bodies of the 19 women violently killed, demonstrating alleged brutality by the Soviet soldiers, as the faces of the deceased women were hard to identify due to the facial injuries and blows to the head
Face of Russian/Soviet imperialism is forever imprinted. Gorbachov was just lesser asshole Russian leader, very good for Russian measures, but still way below human.
I guess he will be always be a controversial figure, like Churchill.
The soviets taught eastern Europe to deal only in absolute – you can only be their enemy or their friend, nothing in-between.
So of course a complex figure like Gorbachec won’t be remembered fondly in a country like Lithuania. I totally understand that.
However, what makes me especially sad is that pseudo-historian calling Gorbachev a criminal. If you’re a historian, surely you can understand the complexity of the situation he was in. Yeah as the head of state he’s responsible. But he had to stop a 60-years-old murder machine. You can’t do that in an instant.