Lithuania launches process of revoking citizenship from Russian ballerina for pro-Putin comments

The Lithuanian Interior Ministry has ordered its migration department to begin proceedings to strip Russian ballerina and actress Ilze Liepa of Lithuanian citizenship.

“Ilze Liepa’s public statements are considered to discredit the state,” read a ministry statement, as quoted by BNS.

The migration department has reportedly asked the relevant authorities to review statements Liepa made last year about the war in Ukraine and Vladimir Putin.

The news outlet LRT noted that Lithuanian law allows for the state to revoke the citizenship of people who have acquired it “by way of exception” (i.e. people who were granted citizenship without meeting the requirements for naturalization) and who have citizenship in another country if their actions threaten Lithuania’s national security or if they publicly express support for a state that threatens the security of Lithuania, its allies, or other E.U. countries.

In November 2022, Ilze Liepa said in an interview that she is “ashamed” of the Baltic countries’ actions and that she supports Vladimir Putin and Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine. Liepa received Lithuanian citizenship in 2000 due to her long partnership with Lithuanian ballet artist Petras Skirmantas.