We need more of President's Nauseda "It's Lithuania Minor" mindset.

Recently the Lithuanian President condemned the Russification of a Lithuanian writer's museum in Lithuania Minor. This sparked in me a bit of hope that maybe we'll slowly get out of this stupid mindset that "What russia controls is lost". From Ingria, to Abrene, down to Crimea, russia for centuries have bite by bite genocided us.

They take parts of our land (ie Setomaa, Vadjamaa, etc), genocide the locals, then replace the local population with russians. Then our peoples refuse to do anything because "no one wants to deal with more russians" or it's "too costly". This signals to Russia that we're fine of being killed off, so long as they do it bit by bit.

This is what is are currently doing in Ukraine. They took Crimea, and because no one forced it out of it and many of allies de facto settled for it's lost, they are now taking eastern Ukraine. Yet again the same mindset from many countries is "Let's de facto let russia have it", by pushing for peace over victory. And then we see that russia hopes with this peace by finishing off Ukraine with the Belarus treatment.

Or another example is Finland. They took most of Karelia, now the Finns refuse to seriously wanting it back. With this defensive only mindset, russia is now taking advantage and is hoping in the future to make Finland a rump state by recreating the 1743 borders.

So what makes President Nauseda's comments a bit hopeful for me is that after many years we finally have an actual statement that acknowledges that our countries have nationally homeland which is under foreign control. For decades state policy rested on status quo borders because it was assumed international laws and NATO would keep us permanently safe. Hence we de facto or in the case of Latvia de jure legitimatised the takeover and genocide of the eastern parts of our homelands (and west in the case of Lithuania). Maybe the president's comments will slowly break the mainstream taboo that russia right now is controlling and genociding large parts of our cultural homelands.

Hopefully one day a majority of our countries will push for the restoration of Lithuania Minor, Eastern Latgale, Setomaa, and Ingria. We should not start offensive wars for it, but we should be political and culturally active. We should slowly start saving up and planning so they can smoothly be brought to the standards of the free parts of our country. It should be made clear to russia that if they launch any war or green men into us, then all gloves are off and the conflict will only be ended with all historical lands returned to us.

It is time we use President Nauseda's sparks to burn down russian imperalism and make us completely free.

Notes:
Because how I know some people will think and respond, here are some points in advance:

Reasons for land returned:
* Strategic: Every kilometre returned builds our strategic depth. Lithuania Minor ends the gap into the Baltics and our eastern homelands give us more depth to protect ourselves.

* Cultural: Whole south-Finnic and Baltic cultures have been lost because their homelands are mostly or completely occupied by Russia. Restoring the lands makes it possible to bring the cultures back.

* Economic: More forests, farmland, mines. Restoring the lost cultures would also increase tourism.

Counter counter-arguments:

Russia ruined it!: Russia takes this as weakness and uses it further make us disappear bit by bit. Just look at Ukraine right now, our own history, or Finland's.

It's too costly!: Creating funds and saving up now will in the long term will give us the money to rebuild these regions of country. No one, including I are expecting us to have the lands returned in five years.

It's illegal!: The whole russian colonisation and genocide of these lands in the first place are illegal. Our cultures and brother cultures are indigenous to these regions, and hence are under international law ensured indigenous rights. (Do not argue otherwise unless you think fellow Finnic culture; the Sami or the Maori who have been in New Zealand for less time we're been here are somehow not indigenous) The only way realistically to ensure these rights are for them to be in our countries. In Estonia legally there hasn't been ratified legitimisation of the occupation and genocide.

This is aggression/imperialism!: Russia is already being the aggressor, and have been for many centuries. They still want to genocide us regardless. Having the lands back would strengthen our position (see reasons above), and weaken them. Additionally I'm not asking for us to start wars of aggression or imperialism. We're too small to start that and it would ruin us. We should only take action via soft measures, or if they start conflict first. Additionally unlike the russians, we don't intend to make their country disappear from the world. We respect human rights and no one seriously wants Petersburg or Moscow. They have a right to exist, and we have a right to be strong enough to exist fully free the next time our allies are weak/unwilling.