Russia is not responsible for the alleged Soviet "atrocities" in Lithuania in 1991 and suggests leaving the past to be studied and judged by historians, the Russian Embassy in Lithuanian said on Wednesday.
Lithuania marks on Thursday the 20th anniversary of the tragic events in the capital, Vilnius, which saw at least 14 civilians killed and 600 injured in clashes with Soviet troops.
"The Russian Embassy in Lithuania mourns those who were killed during these events and expresses condolences to all the victims and their relatives," the embassy said in a statement.
At the same time, Russian diplomats dismissed again numerous demands to hold Russia responsible for events related to its Soviet past and called on Lithuania "to leave history lessons to historians."
"Any other approach would lead us to excessive politicizing, escalating tensions and hampers Russian-Lithuanian dialogue," the embassy said.
The so-called January Events occurred in Vilnius in January 1991 when Moscow attempted to overthrow the Lithuanian government after the Baltic country proclaimed its independence from the Soviet Union.
From January 8-9, several special Soviet military units, including paratroopers of the 76th Airborne Division based at Pskov, were flown to Lithuania to capture key strategic facilities.
On the night of January 13, Russian troops moved to downtown Vilnius in an attempt to capture the TV tower and clashed with crowds of Lithuanian government supporters, killing at least 14 and injuring 600 civilians.
A Vilnius district court sentenced six Russian servicemen in 1999, but the trials against another 23 suspects have not been held, pending further investigation.
According to prosecutors, "all suspects have taken refuge in Russia and Belarus, and these countries refuse to extradite them to Lithuania."
VILNIUS, January 12 (RIA Novosti)
