Lithuania releases manual advising citizens on what to do if Russia invades

The Lithuanian defence ministry has distributed thousands of manuals advising citizens on what to do if there is a Russian invasion.

The 75-page manual entitled: Guide to Active Resistance contains information on how to spot Russian weapons, military vehicles and equipment. It will be distributed to schools, libraries and other public buildings across the country.

In 2014, Russian special forces who were not wearing military insignia seized Ukrainian military bases during the annexation of Crimea from Ukraine.

The release comes amid escalation of tensions on Nato's eastern fringe following Donald Trump's victory in the US presidential election. On the campaign trail Trump spoke admiringly of Russian president Vladimir Putin, and questioned whether the US would come to the aid of Nato allies if attacked.

Lithuanian Foreign Minister Linka Linkevicius said he was 'very afraid' that Russia would attempt to take advantage of the power vacuum in Washington DC in the wake of the election to test Nato.

In October, Russia deployed nuclear-capable ballistic missiles to its Baltic Kaliningrad enclave, which borders Lithuania, and in November, supersonic Bastion cruise missiles. Nato boosted its military presence in eastern Europe in the wake of the deployment, with Germany, the UK and Canada to deploy thousands of troops to Lithuania, Latvia, and Estonia.

The booklet, which is available to download on the defence ministry's website, is the third such manual produced in Lithuania in the wake of the Crimea annexation.

A previous booklet advised citizens on how to wage campaigns of civil disobedience in case of a foreign occupation, with information on how to hold strikes, spread disinformation and commit cyberattacks. A second booklet published in 2015 contained information on how to resist occupation in a more light-hearted form, and included illustrations of a cartoon cat.

Lithuanian defence minister, Juozas Olekas, said the manuals were a response to increasing public demand for heightened national security. "Our citizens want the basic knowledge on how to survive, and how we can demonstrate that our people are ready to act against any aggression and fight for every centimetre of our land," he added.