By Natalija Zverko, LRT.lt.

Vilnius is tightening the use of Russian in municipal services, a move the capital’s mayor says is part of a consistent effort to strengthen Lithuanian as the country’s official language. However, it only targets Russian and critics warn the policy could hinder the integration of migrants and Russian-speaking residents.

The Vilnius municipality will no longer accept written applications and complaints in Russian. Information in Russian and other non-European Union languages will be provided orally – and only when an employee can speaks it.

Russian will also be removed from the municipality’s website and customer queue-management system.

Mayor Valdas Benkunskas said the changes are not an isolated initiative but part of a broader language policy aimed at encouraging foreigners who settle in Lithuania to learn Lithuanian.

“When we announced initiatives to prevent children of foreigners from third countries from attending Russian-language schools, that was one message,” Benkunskas told reporters earlier this month. “Then we announced plans to provide opportunities for foreigners to learn Lithuanian if they want to stay and live here longer. The third initiative is what we are consistently doing now: reducing the availability of Russian when it comes to receiving public services.”

Read more: LRT.LT