Baltic States Say “Goodbye Russia” After Completing Historic Power Grid Integration With Europe

Lithuania, Latvia, and Estonia successfully synchronized their power grids with continental Europe on Sunday afternoon, marking a historic step toward complete energy independence from Russia, LRT reported on February 9.

Lithuanian President Gitanas Nausėda praised the achievement, calling it a milestone in the Baltic nations' journey to free themselves from Russian influence.

“A few minutes ago, I received wonderful news—the synchronization of the Baltic power grid with continental Europe has been successfully completed,” Nausėda announced.

He described the event as a “historic moment” that ended years of political pressure and energy blackmail from Moscow.

“Goodbye Russia, goodbye Lenin,” he added, underscoring the significance of the Baltics disconnecting from the Soviet-era Unified Power System (UPS), which had bound the region’s energy to Russia since Soviet times.

The Baltic states seamlessly detached from the Russian power system early Saturday morning and operated in isolation until synchronization was finalized Sunday afternoon. The connection was made through LitPol Link, a Lithuanian-Polish transmission line, which links the Baltic grid with Europe’s synchronous network.

In addition to LitPol Link, the Baltic nations are connected to Northern Europe via the NordBalt undersea cable between Lithuania and Sweden, and the EstLink 1 and EstLink 2 cables connecting Estonia to Finland.

A new land-based connection between Lithuania and Poland—Harmony Link—is set to be completed by 2030. This project is expected to further stabilize power synchronization and boost energy trade.

“Harmony Link will contribute to stable synchronization operations and energy trade, ensuring competitive prices for both households and industries,” Nausėda noted.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy praised the Baltic countries’ disconnection from Russia’s power grid, calling it a significant development for Europe during his evening address on February 9.

“Today is an important event for our region and for Europe as a whole. The Baltic states, good friends of Ukraine, have disconnected from Russia’s power grid. Their energy systems are now fully synchronized with continental Europe,” Zelenskyy said.

He emphasized that Moscow can no longer weaponize energy against the Baltic nations, and urged the European Union to align with Ukraine’s sanctions against Russia in the energy sector.

“This makes Europe even more united. We must all continue on this course across the continent. This is particularly relevant for Central European countries that still have contracts with Russia,” Zelenskyy added.

Earlier, Moldova halted electricity imports from the Moldovan Thermal Power Plant (GRES) in Transnistria  on January 1, 2025, following the expiration of its current contract.