Former presidents reunite to celebrate Valdas Adamkus’s centenary

Former presidents of Latvia, Ukraine and Poland visited Valdas Adamkus at his residence on Wednesday to mark the Lithuanian former president’s 100th birthday, LRT reported. Adamkus thanked people for their greetings and said the people of Lithuania were his greatest treasure.

Former Latvian president Valdis Zatlers was the first to arrive, bringing a gift he described as being for “a sweet life”. The two men said they had not seen each other for 17 years. Zatlers, who served as president from 2007 to 2011, called Adamkus his political godfather.

Former Ukrainian president Viktor Yushchenko also sent personal greetings. The two leaders were brought together by Ukraine’s Orange Revolution, during which Adamkus was among the negotiators who helped resolve the crisis. “Long and good years to him; glory to him, glory to Lithuania, glory to Ukraine,” Yushchenko said.

Former Polish president Aleksander Kwasniewski congratulated Adamkus and praised his intellect and ability to assess events. The former presidents posed together for a photograph; they had not met since leaving office. Zatlers recalled a period when the presidents of the Baltic states, Poland, Ukraine and Georgia were friends as well as political partners, united by their understanding of democracy.

Adamkus also received greetings from King Charles III of the United Kingdom. At a celebration on Tuesday, guests gave him a standing ovation. Adamkus said he had been moved by the event and the enthusiastic crowd.

The former presidents spoke for more than an hour over champagne, mainly discussing current affairs. Yushchenko spoke about conditions in Kyiv, saying the city had no water or electricity and that power had been switched on for only a few hours that day. Kwasniewski said the group discussed the consequences of the US election, the war in Ukraine and developments in other countries, with Adamkus leading the conversation.