Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: TUESDAY, February 16, 1993 TAG: 9302160040
SECTION: NATIONAL/INTERNATIONAL PAGE: A-8 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE:
DATELINE: MOSCOW LENGTH: Short
LITHUANIA ELECTS FORMER COMMUNIST
Lithuania, the first republic to announce its secession from the Soviet Union, took a step toward reconciliation Monday by electing a pragmatic former Communist Party leader who has promised to smooth over relations with Moscow as its first post-Soviet president.At a news conference after winning 60 percent of the votes in Sunday's election, Algirdas Brazauskas called for a more practical policy toward Moscow and said he would appoint a new ambassador to Russia. But he also formally turned his back on his own Communist past and promised to speed up privatization and promote foreign investment in the Baltic republic of 3.5 million people.
Brazauskas earned the respect of his fellow countrymen by standing up to Moscow in 1989 and insisting on the right of the Lithuanian Communist Party to pursue an independent policy. As Lithuania's pro-independence bandwagon gathered momentum, Brazauskas was overshadowed by the leader of the nationalist Sajudis movement, Vytautas Landsbergis.
Political analysts said Brazauskas clearly benefited from the inability of Landsbergis and Sajudis to resolve the country's economic problems, which have been greatly exacerbated by the disruption in trading ties with Russia. Industrial production has fallen by 53 percent over the last two years, homes are without hot water, and heating in offices and apartments is minimal.
- The Washington Post