Flowers, fighter aces: Queen's Baltic tour stresses personal ties

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Vilnius (dpa) - Queen Elizabeth II stressed the growing personal links between Britain and Lithuania on Tuesday as her visit to the Baltic state drew to an end.

"I am delighted that contacts between our people, especially the young, have flourished in recent years. Many Lithuanians are now visiting Britain and the number of British people coming (here) is increasing rapidly," the Queen told the Lithuanian Parliament.

The visit, which began on Monday evening, is the first time a reigning British monarch has ever come to the Baltics. It has been met with considerable enthusiasm, with 5,000 people crowding Vilnius' main square to catch a glimpse of the queen.

And organisers have been keen to show a personal touch. After laying a wreath in memory of Lithuanians killed by Soviet forces in 1991, the Queen and her husband, the Duke of Edinburgh, were introduced to relatives of the fallen.

"The Queen being here is like the sun shining on our country," said Galina Jankauskas. Her son, 22-year-old Rolandas, was killed by Soviet shock troops during the Soviet crackdown of January 1991.

When the Queen entered the main square, she was given flowers by an eight-year-old boy, Erikas Adomavicius. Erikas is a descendant of Lithuanian fighter ace Romualdas Marcinkus - the only Lithuanian to fly for the RAF during the Second World War.

Even references to Lithuania's wartime history and suffering were given a British angle. Lithuania's Jewish population was almost annihilated in the Holocaust, with 90 per cent of the estimated 200,000 pre-war population perishing in concentration camps.

"There are many in the British Jewish community whose families lie buried in Lithuania... I pay tribute to all who stood up against tyranny, so often making the ultimate sacrifice," the Queen said.

But present-day links dominated proceedings. As many as 100,000 Lithuanians are thought to have moved to Britain since 2004, making them the second largest "new" European group in the country after Poles.

The royal couple spent the afternoon meeting young entrepreneurs and participants in the Duke of Edinburgh's award scheme.

"I hope young people will continue to travel between our two countries, learning about each other, whether working, studying or as tourists," the Queen said.

The royal couple are due to move on to Latvia on Wednesday and Estonia on Thursday. In all, an estimated 150,000 Baltic citizens are thought to have immigrated to Britain since their countries joined the EU in May 2004.