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Moscow, 'Baltic countries should belong to Russia'

(ANSA) - VILNIUS, JAN 12 - "The Baltics should belong to Russia," said Deputy Chairman of the Russian Duma's Defense Committee Aleksei Zhuravlev, reacting to Lithuanian President Gitanas Nauseda's outrage over Kaliningrad authorities' decision to rename the local museum dedicated to Lithuanian poet Kristijonas Donelaitis. Zhuravlev added that Vilnius would be rightfully Russian as it was already part of the tsarist empire, pointing out that the Suwalki crossing, the strip of territory separating Belarus from Kaliningrad, could be useful for Russia to make supply lines into the Kaliningrad oblast more convenient. The Russian politician then called on Lithuanian politicians to "hold their tongues," pointing out that the Vilnius army could not withstand a confrontation with Russia even for a day. (ANSA).