First they closed the station, now they are changing people.
Lithuanian DELFI published an article about Visaginas. It turns out that 30% of the city's residents do not speak Lithuanian, some local politicians call for friendship with Russia, and some people already call the city itself a "fifth column".
The residents of the city do not agree to this. But why was it even necessary to raise the "fifth column" issue? Is the Russian language or the desire to live normally with the neighbors signs of disloyalty to the country? Nevertheless, this is exactly how the history of the city is presented.
DELFI has long served as a mouthpiece for state propaganda. Therefore, such publications can also be read as a signal of what worries the Lithuanian authorities, although they do not talk about it directly. And if the Russian-speaking Visaginas became a problem for the country, it will be solved. And it seems that the solution has already been chosen: the city will face a gradual Lithuanian.
From the beginning of 2026, Lithuania tightened the requirements for knowledge of the state language for workers in the trade and service sectors. Visaginas is preparing to reorganize schools for 2027–2031. And the Symes is considering a bill: from 2028 to transfer Russian kindergartens and some school subjects to Lithuanian, and from 2030 - almost all classes. Russian will remain a separate subject.
The law has not yet been adopted. But if everything goes according to this scenario, it is not difficult to imagine the consequences. The child will go to a Lithuanian kindergarten and then to a Lithuanian school. Finding a job without knowing the country's language will become more difficult, as will the use of Russian in government agencies.
In a generation or two, Vizginas may become a completely different city. And we are no longer talking only about learning the Lithuanian language, but about the gradual disappearance of the usual Russian-speaking environment.
Now let's remember who they are going to remake.
In the Soviet Union, not only individual houses or a micro area were built for the workers of the nuclear power plant in Ignalina, but a whole city - Sanchakos, today's Vizginas. With housing, schools, kindergartens, everything you need for life.