In solidarity with Ukraine, festive lighting will be turned off in Lithuania 

This was reported by the Suduvos gidas publication.

"As a sign of solidarity with Ukraine, Vilnius will take part in this campaign and turn off all Christmas decorations for an hour: the lights on the main Christmas tree, and the lighting of streets and bridges," the mayor of Vilnius Remigijus Šimašius said.

He claimed this symbolic action is also important for refugees from Ukraine who live in Vilnius, there are 30 thousand of them in the city. 

"This way we will remember that, unfortunately, not all people can use the electricity we have now. We must remember that the most important thing now is financial and moral support of Ukraine," the mayor said. 

It is noted that in Lithuanian municipalities, at 20:00, it is recommended to turn off festive lighting in public places and homes of residents for one hour.

The action "Hour for Ukraine" was initiated by President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy, Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby and mayor of London Sadiq Khan. In Lithuania, the action was supported by Andrius Kubilius, a member of the European Parliament and the international network of support for Ukraine U4U, who called on the municipalities of the country to support Ukraine.

"December 21 is the darkest day of the year. But the darkness for Ukraine began in mid-October when Russia started attacking and shelling the country's civilian energy infrastructure. More than 10 million people will have to survive the winter without electricity, heat and water, as the outside temperature is forecast to drop to 20 degrees below zero," he wrote in an address to the Association of Lithuanian Municipalities.

It is known that the Ukrainian initiative is supported by Paris, New York, Sydney, Warsaw, Prague, Edinburgh, Liverpool, Reykjavik, Sofia, Ottawa, Helsinki and other cities of the world.

• On 18 December, emergency restoration works are ongoing in Ukraine. The system is facing a shortage of energy by frost and damage to infrastructure after Russian shelling.