The letter was handed to the Austrian Foreign Ministry on Thursday evening, the representative of the Lithuanian Embassy in Vienna. Copy of a letter sent to European Commissioner for Justice, Viviane Reding and the foreign ministers of all EU countries, Foreign Ministry reported. Holovaty was arrested in Austria, July 14 at the request of Lithuania. In Lithuania, he is a suspect in the case of the events of January 13, 1991 in Vilnius. Holovaty in 1991-1992, was commander of the group "Alpha", which is January 13, 1991 was sent to the TV tower in Vilnius, where clashes. Austria Golovatova released due to lack of information for the extension of his detention. Exemption Golovatova angered Lithuania, demanding that the Austrian explanation. "Lithuania is grateful for the efforts of the Austrian colleagues, but I must regretfully admit that the letter contained nothing new. All statements contained in it are already known to Lithuania. Also, we had already publicly stated that Lithuania does not consider these allegations arguments "- quoted the Foreign Ministry of Foreign Minister Audronius Ažubalis. He noted that Lithuania and hopes to continue as soon as possible to get full answer from the Austrian Foreign Ministry in a note handed to him, as well as response to the appeal commissioner of the three Baltic countries on July 18. The note, which was handed to the representative of the Austrian Embassy on July 18, Austria, please explain on the basis of what arguments and why so quickly decided to release the suspect on the case on January 13. The Minister hopes that created July 21 Ministries of Justice of Lithuania and Austria working group of experts of both countries is investigating all the factual circumstances of the incident with the release of Golovatova, but notes that this issue will continue to rise at a European level to ensure that such incidents do not recur in the future. Ažubalis also stressed that Lithuania remembers the support of Austria in the struggle for the restoration of independence in 1991, and calls to separate the long-term partnership of the search for truth in specific legal situations. "Today, the task of Lithuania – in the first place to find out why Austria ignoring EU law, to take care of that on the whole of the European Union to be properly evaluated the action of Austria, and to ensure that the European Union are well learned that lesson the lack of solidarity. Awareness of errors should be strengthened and to bring together EU partners. In this context, is to protect the interests of Lithuania and the struggle for the European Union and its values, "- said Azubalis. In the Foreign Ministry also stressed that the Attorney General's office informed the Lithuanian Ministry of Justice July 20 Austria, that Lithuania, as well as discussing it publicly, European Commissioner for Justice, fundamental rights of citizens and nstva Viviane Reding, is well known that Austria is valid for a reservation to apply the European arrest warrant only to offenses committed after August 7, 2002. But Lithuania is also known that in such cases the European arrest warrant is automatically considered a petition for the extradition of a person. This means that in deciding Golovatove was observed not only the law of Austria on extradition and legal assistance, but also the law of the European Union, as well as legal regulations of the European Union and / or international law, which are part of federal law in Austria: Convention 1995 on a simplified procedure of extradition between the member countries of the European Union, prepared on the basis of Article K.3 of the Treaty on European Union and the European Convention on Extradition of 1957. The Supreme Council of Lithuania March 11, 1990 announced the restoration of independence, but the Soviet authorities announced the decision to be unconstitutional. In January 1991, Lithuania began in unauthorized protest, after which the republic had been deployed soldiers special forces, airborne units, which occupied a number of strategic sites. On the night of January 13 column of Soviet armored vehicles headed for the center of Vilnius. During the clashes of protesters with the telecentre near the military killed 14 people and over 600 were injured. Among the dead was a worker and "Alpha", shot in the back. Security officials said that the clashes were the result of large-scale provocation, and the dead, including fighter and "Alpha" were shot by snipers. Head of the Department of National Defence of Lithuania in 1990-1991 Audrius Butkevicius subsequently in several interviews saying that he ordered on the roofs of neighboring homes with the TV tower were placed snipers "Sąjūdis" who shot at people. Lithuanian law enforcement bodies investigate this issue was not performed. For crimes allegedly committed by the Soviet military January 13, 1991, the Vilnius district court in 1999 sentenced six people, 23 more suspects remain on the case is under investigation. Of the 23 suspects – 21 citizens of Russia and two citizens of Belarus. Lithuanian Prosecutor General's Office sent 94 requests for legal assistance to Belarus, Russia and Germany, but received only negative responses. Is currently under international search participants in those events in the space of the European Union, issued a European arrest warrant. The security forces acted on the orders of the leadership, but later the former Soviet President Mikhail Gorbachev denied that he ordered attacks on the TV tower.
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