Christmas is a time full of national cultural niches and ex-pats around the world diligently try to recreate elements of festivities from their homeland; however well-integrated they may be for the rest of the year. Icelanders and Iceland are no exception to this rule — and nor are foreigners living in Iceland. This weekend the Lithuanian Icelandic Community held its annual children’s Christmas party, and it was more fun than ever. Read the full story

The mother of a baby found dead this summer in a Reykjavik rubbish skip has now been charged. Read the full story

Police have claimed the Schengen Agreement is partly to blame for an increase in Lithuanian gang crime in Finland. Read the full story

Danish police have rescued a Lithuanian teenager, who was being held as a sex slave in Copenhagen, after she managed to secretly email a friend in her home country. Read the full story

Swedish diplomat and Council of Europe Commissioner for Human Rights, Thomas Hammarberg speaks out on the Lithuania Gay Pride ban: Read the full story

Lithuanian Minister for Foreign Affairs, Vygaudas Usackas, has followed his Latvian counterpart’s lead. Both have now spoken out and defended Iceland on its decision to have a referendum in regards to the Icelandic bank “Icesave” bankruptcy and its debts to Great Britain and the Netherlands. Read the full story

The Lithuanian Parliament unanimously approved and gave full support for Iceland’s membership application to join the European Union today as well as encouraging other member states to approve the application. The Lithuanian Parliament decided this was especially essential due to the fact that Iceland was the first nation to recognize Lithuania’s independence. Read the full story

The president of Iceland, Olafur Ragnar Grimsson and the First Lady, Dorrit Moussaieff are today taking part in large scale celebrations in Lithuania, which is celebrating the thousandth anniversary of its nationhood. Read the full story

“Lithuania should be helping Iceland in it’s financial crisis,” says MP Petras Austrevicius of the liberal party in Lithuania and continues: “Iceland was the first country to help us when we were struggling for independence from the Soviet Union, which we finally gained 17 years ago.”

“We should not forget the courage of the Icelandic nation when they backed up our fight for freedom in very complex times” Says Read the full story

Last Saturday, immigrants from Lithuania met in Reykjavik as part of an establishing congress. According to reports in the Baltic Course, Lithuanians have decided to establish a more formal community in Iceland.

The establishing congress was held in order to elect a board of directors as well as to discuss and plan future activities of the new organisation. Reports indicate that the organisation is most likely to focus on children’s education, the preservation and promotion of culture, and sports.

Inga Minelgaite was one of the people behind the establishment of the new organisation. She explained that the Community of Lithuanians in Iceland will feature open membership so that any resident of Iceland with a connection to Lithuania is welcome to join.

Minelgaite pointed out that many Lithuanians do not intend to become permanent residents of Iceland. According to the statistics available to her, there are approximately 1,500 people of Lithuanian origin in Iceland, the majority working as unskilled labourers or in construction. Despite joining together for activities while in Iceland, with the new organization, Minelgaite predicted that many would return to Lithuania.

Lithuania and Iceland have warm diplomatic ties. On a visit to Iceland in 2006, the government of Lithuania officially expressed its gratitude to Iceland for being one of the first countries in the world to recognise its independence in 1991.

“Lithuania has always remembered and will always remember with exceptional gratitude that Iceland was the first to stand up and speak out before the world in defence of our nation and its ultimate goals,” said President of the Republic of Lithuania Valdas Adamkus in a letter to the people of Iceland written in 2006.