Russian agents target LGBT+ activist in Lithuania

Pro-Russian operatives have located the home of LGBT+ rights activist Saša Kazanceva in Lithuania and issued death threats against her, an investigation by LRT has revealed.

Kazanceva, who fled Russia in early March 2022 following the full-scale invasion of Ukraine, had continued her advocacy work from Lithuania. However, in May 2025, she received threats from a pro-Russian group that had uncovered her residential address.

“What will happen when we find her is not worth repeating. Let’s just say the earth will be light for her,” the message stated. The activist told LRT she still does not feel completely safe.

Police have launched a pre-trial investigation but have declined to comment on the case.

Kazanceva had previously worked as a journalist and editor of a popular LGBT+ rights publication in Russia. She left after realizing she could face imprisonment for her activism and for speaking out against the war in Ukraine. Russia had already intensified its crackdown on LGBT+ rights, with restrictive laws introduced as early as 2013.

“You know they can’t arrest everyone, but you never know when it might be your turn. The goal is to make people self-censor, to drain their energy to resist,” she said.

After arriving in Lithuania in August 2022, Kazanceva continued her advocacy, believing she could be more effective abroad. In 2023, Russian authorities declared her a foreign agent, later adding her to lists of terrorists and extremists and sentencing her in absentia to nine years in prison.

Security experts note that the Kremlin actively conducts operations against activists who have fled Russia, even beyond its borders.