In Lithuania, Partisan Units and Resistance Groups Against Occupation will be Created

On June 27, Laurynas Kasčiūnas, the Chairman of the Lithuanian Seimas Committee on National Security and Defense, and Arvidas Pocius, a member of the committee, held a press conference to present the proposed changes to the Law on Martial Law. The aim of these changes is to implement the principle of general defense and strengthen the defense capabilities of the state. This information is available on the website of the Lithuanian Seimas.

These changes are being made to create conditions for more active involvement of citizens in the defense of the country, so that each individual can find their place in the defense system. They involve the creation of armed resistance units of individuals and their organizations, as well as partisan units that will be considered part of the armed forces after the declaration of martial law.

The amendments also regulate their formation, candidate selection, verification, training, interaction with the armed forces, and provisions for support. The amendments to the law also include the integration of the partisan command units of the Lithuanian Riflemen's Union into the plans for national defense.

"National defense is not solely the responsibility of the Lithuanian army and other institutions that make up the armed forces and NATO allies. Every citizen, regardless of age and place of residence, must be prepared to resist aggression and occupation. Additionally, all civil state and municipal institutions, businesses, society, associations of citizens, and organizations must be ready for this," said Laurynas Kasčiūnas.

Taking into account the existing system of commanders in Lithuanian municipalities, the amendments propose regulating the institution of military commanders who will operate during martial law and will have additional tasks and functions.

"Command units are created to protect the territory during martial law, and they can perform important tasks in support of the army or other state institutions," summarized Arvidas Pocius.

The draft law envisages expanding the list of subjects of the Lithuanian Armed Forces by including the reserves of the State Border Guard Service, the reserves of the Public Security Service, and the reserves of the Security Command Service during martial law. In other words, these reserves, which are assigned to the armed forces after the declaration of martial law, will be included in the composition of the Armed Forces. The formation of these reserves is planned to be regulated in the near future.

It is worth noting that after World War II, the partisan resistance in Lithuania was the strongest among the Baltic countries, and certain regions were controlled by insurgents until 1949. Lithuanian partisans effectively fought against the Soviet Red Army and the NKVD forces by employing methods such as sabotage, ambushes, and targeted killings of individual communist leaders.