WHEN OIL AND POLITICS MIX: THE PRIVATIZATION OF LITHUANIA’S OIL INDUSTRY

By Terry D. Clark and Kestutis Paulauskas

The 1999 decision to sell a controlling share in the Lithuanian oil industry, Mazeikiu Nafta, to U.S.-based Williams International for US$75 million triggered a heated political debate and the collapse of the government. Now, just three years later, Williams’ announcement in August that it has decided to abandon its investment has reopened the debate. When put alongside Moscow’s rapprochement with Washington, it raises concerns about the reemergence of Russian neocolonialism in the Baltic region.

THE POLITICAL EVENT OF THE DECADE