AP Interview: Lithuania FM calls for regime change in Russia
By MATTHEW LEE
AP Diplomatic Writer
WASHINGTON (AP) — Lithuania’s top diplomat says that removing Russian President Vladimir Putin and his inner circle from power is the only way to protect the West and its allies from future threats from Moscow, urging an even tougher stance than the U.S. and many NATO allies have been willing to pursue. In an interview with The Associated Press in Washington on Monday, Lithuanian Foreign Minister Gabrielius Landsbergis said Putin’s annual Victory Day speech was “underwhelming” and that the “gloomy faces” of generals and others were signs of failing in the Ukraine war. Yet, he said a wounded Putin may be even more dangerous and that the only way to remove the threat is to remove him.