107 Estonian
Internal Security Service,
Estonian Internal Security Service Annual Review 2016, at 35 (Apr. 17, 2017).
605
Aija Krutaine & Andrius Sytas, ‘‘Baltics Can Keep Lights On If Russia Turns Off the Gas
Reuters, May 7, 2014.
606
Georgi Kantchev, With US. Gas, Europe Seeks Escape From Russia’s Energy Grip
The Wall Street Journal, Feb. 25, 2016. NATO Cooperative Cyber Defence Centre of Excellence, About Us https://ccdcoe.org (visited Dec. 31, 2017).
608
Ott Ummelas, Worlds Most High-Tech Voting System to Get New Hacking Defenses
Bloomberg Politics, July 18, 2017. supply security of energy, where the role of corruption can secretly and considerably influence the country’s energy independence.’’
604
The Baltic states have thus made it a priority to reduce their historical dependence on energy supplies from Russia. After independence, their legacy gas infrastructure was only connected to countries
of the former Soviet Union, not Europe. Russia’s state-owned
Gazprom and other Russian gas companies held large stakes—up to 50 percent—in Baltic states natural gas companies, though new EU regulatory requirements led Gazprom to start selling its shares in those companies in 2014. To diversify its supplies, Lithuania opened an LNG regasification terminal in 2014, which has also allowed it to negotiate much better prices for its purchases from Russia (in 2013 Gazprom charged Lithuania $460-$490 per 1,000 cubic meters, compared to an average of $370-$380 for the EU).
605
At the opening ceremony of the terminal, Lithuania’s
president remarked, Nobody else, from now on, will be able to dictate to us the price of gas, or to buy our political will.’’
606
There is also the potential for Lithuania to export some of the LNG it has imported and regasified to its Baltic neighbors, though such infrastructure is not in place yet. As one of the most connected countries in the world, Estonia has long been a leader in the realm of internet innovation and cyber security. In 2004, Estonia proposed
a NATO cyber defense center, which was established in Tallinn in 2008 and consists of six branches focused on technology, strategy, operations, law, education and training, and support.
607
Estonia is also working to strengthen the security of its online voting system by overhauling its software and adding new anti-tampering features that will help guard against potential hacking attacks directed by the Kremlin or other malicious actors.
608
Latvia, Lithuania, and Estonia are clearly
on the front line of the Kremlin’s malign influence operations, and have suffered from some of the most egregious cyberattacks and disinformation campaigns yet seen in Russia’s near abroad. As members of NATO and the EU that share borders both with Russia and its exclave of
Kaliningrad, and which collectively host large Russian-speaking populations, the Baltic states are both primary targets and uniquely susceptible to Russian active measures campaigns. The United States should therefore make it a high priority to study the experiences of the Baltics and apply lessons learned to its own defenses and those of allies and partners around Europe, as well as increase support to the Baltics,
in both word and deed, to further deter Kremlin aggression.
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108 Statement of Rolandas Krisciunas, Ambassador of the Republic of Lithuania,
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