Lithuania's Volunteer Militia: The Rifleman's Union

The Lithuanian Riflemen's Union is a state-sponsored paramilitary public organization that brings people from across Lithuanian society to train them in the defense of the state.
They are approved by the government and supported by the Ministry of National Defense.
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[@Iratis_]

I am a member of the LRU and belong to the 4-th territorial defense unit in the youth branch and I must say that you managed to indeed cover as much as possible about the union in the minimum time that you had. Also I should add that the Riflemen culture goes much more deeper than just combat, as for example the youth program that has 4 different "rank" stages tries to mold the person into someone who is patriotic, can participate in combat (This recently became the bigger goal for the organization) and develop traits of a leader. Further more when it comes to national holidays for example from January to March we have 3 national holidays dedicated to independence for which I believe the majority of Riflemen come and celebrate not because they have to but because they want to dedicate their FREE time which I think is extremely nice. Not only that but the membership fee is not necessarily there for the youth as most schools have a Riflemen club that forms a platoon, for which members don't have to pay and as a matter of fact the teacher who creates it and participates in activities receives some funding for the continuation of these activities for students. Although I am happy to be part of this org. there are some issues with funding as in some cases there is not enough money to update equipment or kits or even receive a uniform or a badge (not to mention the combat branch which need weaponry) as the Union grew so fast after 2022 that the MOD had to increase funding for us. Overall the LRU is one of a kind organization that doesn't seem to exist anywhere else in the world and I am her for it. Thank you for the video!

[@manttaz]

I heard some say that LRU are the special group of people who pays a membership fee every year, spend their own free time in the training, has to buy their own equipment and Lithuania gives us opportunity to defend our country 😊 Tėvynės labui !!

[@ZhylvisLT]

@@manttazit’s a silly joke or stupid dissatisfaction. Here applies J.F.Kennedy’s quote: “Ask not what your country can do for you - ask what you can do for your country,”

[@manttaz]

@@ZhylvisLT I totally agree but what I said before was in a good way. I meant that LRU members does not ask for anything they are here because of their own choice and will do anything it takes for our country.

[@ZhylvisLT]

@@manttaz I understood your intention, your last words said it all. But I felt the need to make it clear for everyone, that this narrative sometimes is being used against our country, government and we, patriotic people, do not agree with this. Tėvynės labui!

[@motorcycleta89]

Hey I would like to go to Lithuania to live for a couple of years maybe even marry there, do u think a Certified Electrician like me could help you at LRU? Im not looking for combat just giving my electrician services to the unit

[@eruno_]

fun fact, current Prime Minister Šimonytė is also the member of the Rifleman.

[@daz705]

fun fact šimonytė is a polish communist that doesn't care about you... have you seen the recent party shout of her? yeah exactly

[@pppLT19]

​@@daz705Watch less optv my dude😂

[@daz705]

@@pppLT19 vienintelis ,,argumentas"?

[@baleustalt317]

@@pppLT19 Čmilytė too.

[@eruno_]

other Baltic states have something similar. "Estonian Defence League" in Estonia and "Latvian National Guard" in Latvia.

[@cm275]

Having Russia as a neighbor has that effect on people.

[@kajus1402]

those are more like KASP in Lithuania rather than the Rifleman's Union

[@eruno_]

@@kajus1402 That's why I said "something similar". To be fair the distinction between state paramilitary and volunteer defense force is often blurry.

[@kajus1402]

@eruno_ I disagree. There is a big difference between a paramilitary and national guard, both of whom do different missions.

[@eruno_]

@@kajus1402 There's some overlap. That's why organisations I mentioned are grouped under both "state paramilitary" and "home guard" sections in Wikipedia. And talking about functions specifically, Lithuania Rifleman fill roles that in some countries would be filled by home guard and in some state paramilitary, it really depends.

[@str_brst8979]

Used to be a young riffleman as a teenager(for a total of 4 years). at the time heavy emphasis in our company was directed towards tactics(formations, engaging the enemy, etc.) , landnav, first aid, and so on. though many of us dropped out over years and I myself lost interest in the organization as I kept growing older, however when I joined the military as a volunteer/conscript, the skill package I had from rifflemen days opened to me doors to opportunities that were otherwise closed to most conscripts. Proud to have been a member.

[@fhurerblet]

Your lithuanian pronunciation is getting better and better, good job.

[@LithuaniaExplained]

thanks! but it might just be because I'm taking the time to confirm things with my wife. When encountering a new word, how I THINK it should be pronounced (in terms of emphasis on certain syllables) is 95% wrong :(

[@seanshepard2000]

agreed!

[@TheRazorTS]

Had a blast there attending as a kid, sadly was too young and stopped going once my older friends quit, highly recommend to let your kids try. Still have fond memories learning cartography and then visiting areas we studied, first aid, weapon assembly and maintenance, marching and forest survival skills.

[@RamunasLabonas]

I would like to thank you for this nice presentation of Rifleman Union. Nice opportunity to represent our organization for our foreign friends. Thank you.

[@TheMidwesternViking]

Salute To My Lithuanian Brothers And Sisters, We To Have A Milita Force In The States Just We Sponsor/Support Ourselves Mostly Out Of Pocket, Some States Are lucky To Be Supported/Funded By Their State, Wish We Could Work Along Side Our Friends.

[@m39fan]

There is a distinct difference between militia and State Defense Forces. I would urge you to join the official SDF in your state if one is organized. Over 20 states have them and other states are considering reactivating theirs.

[@TheMidwesternViking]

@m39fan respectfully no sir, how can I put my life and my men's life in the hands of a system that would swallow us up or be under the command of a individual who's not as committed? (Not saying all SDF command and those in its ranks are like that) I mean perhaps if a event or situation where to arise serious enough we would allow ourselves to be integrated into the SDF or NG like the Ukrainian Volunteer battalions did in 2014-2015 and now. We don't mind working with and along side like I said...we just like our freedom and flexibility.

[@jdtravel178]

Keep it up Brother ❤

[@matasst4124]

Nugalėsim arba mirsim 🇱🇹

[@arunasz2443]

Reikėtu pakeisti į ...mirti nežadu..nugalėsim!

[@jvkanufan8115]

The LRU were the ( or perhaps one) precursor to the Forest Brothers in Lithuania, right?

[@Ignash]

It is built upon the legacy of it, yes.

[@manometras]

Yes. The precursor and the succesor.

[@mariusrutkaus]

LRU existed during interwar Lithuania and Forest Brothers were composed of both LRU and ex-military. So...sort of yes.

[@240pixel]

I was a member of LRU as a kid before I joined Lithuanian armed forces in around 2015. That was a good summary of the organization.

[@Sofus.]

All Scandinavian countries have similar organizations hjemmeværnet Denmark, Hemvärnet Sveden, Heimevernet Norway.🛡

[@Ziemys]

Home guards are more similar to Lithuanian KASP (National Defence Volunteer Forces), LRU or (LŠS in Lithuanian) is actually quite different and broader organisation ;)

[@Sofus.]

@@Ziemys The Home Guard does not have a prominent civilian component, but it is a broad military array with a separate army, marine and an air force component.

[@psichonautas]

LRU is a civilian NGO and not part of the official Lithuanian Armed Forces. For the territorial defence in Lithuania we have KASP or volunteer forces that are part of the Armed Forces.

[@eruno_]

​​​@@psichonautas LRU statute is approved by Ministry of National Defense. LRU in the case of war would also serve military role just like KASP under Armed Forces command. I think LRU is interesting example of organisation that combines both civilian training & military component.

[@Funzy2.0]

Yo one of those guys is my classmate. And we're both in the same company. although there is such a thing as a territorial riflemen unit, but also, it consists of companies, and within companies there are squads, and within squads there are divisions. so i am the deputy head of the department, and my friend that was in this video is the squad leader. So thats kinda fun

[@user-wb4vj6gf4j]

I am actually a part of it 😃

[@dolorian_dollar]

I'm such an idiot for not joining the army or this union when I had the chance. Great video 👍

[@manttaz]

You still can do it. Joining Lithuanian rifleman's Union is always possible to do. Just contact it and it will tell you how you can do it

[@dolorian_dollar]

​@@manttaz Ye, I'm going back to Lithuania for good in a year's time, so I'll see what options I can take. Cheers for the reply 👍

[@Liukas642]

@@dolorian_dollar Depending on where you are, there are sectors of the Rifleman's union in foreign countries. They are far less formal, but operate under the same structure. Just google the town/country you are in and add "Šaulių Sąjunga". I know there are some across Europe

[@LaurynasMilinis]

​@@dolorian_dollar there's a foreigner regiment aswell if you're planning to leave again

[@pppLT19]

​@@dolorian_dollarWe are also creating more and more units in foreign countries too. Dont know about quality of the training tho

[@viliusvasiliauskas9023]

Im still there for over 7years now🎉

[@yesand1]

Fun fact: I'm in this video

[@eruno_]

it's not uncommon to see Rifleman assisting during national emergencies (like COVID or border crisis) or helping to keep public order during national events. Generally very useful.

[@ananasaz2696]

Thanks! Your growth in the last year is abnormous keep it up!

[@valmetvu773]

ahh what a very good KZbin recommendation. Nice! I will be saving this video for sharing and looking over your facts of this particular army.

[@Monte80]

They were already very helpful during Covid. Helped to organize multiple things while governement was still in debate.

[@user-rq5sj7td2r]

Very interesting

[@matikramer9648]

Ačiū Ir sėkmės

[@te6xn914]

Many clips of people i know or places i have been in

[@eddeddesc3717]

Very cool

[@seanshepard2000]

as an American, the whole "militia" concept has gone from something that formed my country to a bunch of nuts with guns who have no idea how to organize and protiect, but would rather spend weekends in the woods talking about how bad the goverment is and how every person should be armed with AR15 rifles .... as a (responsible) gun owner myself, these groups have a very negative association around them and tend to promote the civil unrest rather than stand ready to do something about it. Very cool that LT has a state-sanctioned version of this with volunteers who are actually TRAINED to do things to HELP the country if called! I say bravo! Very cool! I had no idea that Lithuania had such an organization! Another home run @lithuaniaexplained!

[@eruno_]

I always thought that in US law "well regulated militia" would mean something similar to LRU in Lithuania. I guess "well regulated" could be open to interpretation though

[@seanshepard2000]

@@eruno_ yup - it's in our constitution, but you hit the nail on the head: "well regulated" is the operative phrase - this was a great idea in in 1787 when our constitution was written and we were scared that the King of England could come back, but the reality is, now, we have a professional army - the militias that exist in the USA now are complete fringe groups - either extreme right wingers that think that their group of 20-30 people could stop some kind of invasion or other crazy people who look like they could fight their way out of a restaurant that patrol our southern border, thinking that THEY can solve the problems that the US Border Patrol (with more than 60,000 emplyees, lol) can't. IT has a negative connotation these days - the militias are seen mostly as right-wing "gun nuts", which makes some of uf (responsible gun owners) also look like nuts when we talk about firearms. I think it's mostly an excuse for people to carry their guns openly, talk about freedom and the constitution and try to project to the public that THEY are stronger/smarter/more responsive than our actual government. The concept is no longer relevant here in the USA - that being said, I LOVE what Lithuanian has done! If we had something liek that here?? WOW! Concerned citizens, willing to give their time to learn actual skills from actual professionals to do actual god when called upon? I love that concept!!! Very organized, which is where we circle back to "well regulated" (read 'well organized') - doesnt' exist here, just my 2 cents worth, but remmeber, the only time we really ever hear about militas, is when their member make a terrosist act against out own country (Tim othy Mcveigh)

[@digital_nobody]

in case of war with mordor the unios becomes part of the military

[@baneofbanes]

@@eruno_at the time that the construction was written militiamen generally provided their own equipment, guns included.

[@baneofbanes]

Tbf you shouldn’t trust the government. I just don’t trust militias either.

[@thatoneguy-nf7su]

have you made a video about Kaziuko muge?

[@LithuaniaExplained]

No. Not yet. I made one about Easter though. Those types of videos tend to do poorly- people don’t seem interested

[@thatoneguy-nf7su]

@@LithuaniaExplained i understand, but still i hope you make one it would be interesting to see someone foreign react to this fair.

[@vir.orationis]

Other similar organisations are: 1. Noored Kotkad in Estonia 2. Jaunsardze in Latvia 3. In Poland I forgot.

[@te6xn914]

Im in the youth riflemen 10th teratorial unit

[@user-vidma]

Wow, i do wish Austria would have the possibility of a voluntary Militia too. But, they cant even handle the regular militia properly - its a shame

[@klausdietrich7428]

Sounds legal constitutionalpractical and Sustainable without causing over Ressources and unnecessary Humanitarian harm .... powr in armies hand if 2 much suits..❤

[@m39fan]

Nice. In the US 26 states have a government sponsored State Defense Force or State Guard. Many of them do the same tasks as the National Guard but unfortunately most are not armed and therefore could do little in an armed conflict unless leadership suddenly allowed privately owned firearms to be carried. Like the LRU, the SDF's have people from all walks of life but are heavy with former law enforcement and military.

[@sarunassulinskas2256]

Latvia has Something similar called Jaunsardze

[@roborme696]

We do have the rangers in Canada, not the same as they are a sub division on the reserves and they are paid when they are on duty.

[@LithuaniaExplained]

Thanks. I did consider the Rangers, but after finding out that they were paid, I decided not to mention them

[@michaelflower6172]

In Canada their otherwise known as Iron Warriors, or Weekend Warriors in the US…

[@tommyseabee2176]

Most if not all of the US States have “State Guards”. They are not part of the National Guard. It’s completely voluntary.

[@josedonizetidores5091]

💪

[@dominykasbudrys1011]

Hi

[@asundev3326]

Sounds very similar to the standschutzen of Austro Hungary

[@MikeMikeSlavinitz-cp8rc]

🟦🟦🟦🟦🟦🟦🟦🟦🟦🟦🟦🟦🟦🟦🟦🟨🟨🟨🟨🟨🟨🟨🟨🟨🟨🟨🟨🟨🟨🟨Slava Ukraine!

[@jayrey5390]

🇱🇹✊🏴󠁧󠁢󠁷󠁬󠁳󠁿🇬🇧

[@MikeMikeSlavinitz-cp8rc]

🟨🟨🟨🟨🟨🟨🟨🟨🟨🟨🟨🟨🟨🟨🟨🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩🟥🟥🟥🟥🟥🟥🟥🟥🟥🟥🟥🟥🟥🟥🟥Lietuva as labai myliu!!!!!!!!!

[@10hawell]

Similar to Polish Territorial Defence Guard.

[@MikeMikeSlavinitz-cp8rc]

🟨🟨🟨🟨🟨🟨🟨🟨🟨🟨🟨🟨🟨🟨🟨🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩🟥🟥🟥🟥🟥🟥🟥🟥🟥🟥🟥🟥🟥🟥🟥 Lietuviais jus esate ir BUS! .❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️

[@simongrushka983]

why chose the m81 camo though? there are better camos than that

[@eruno_]

it's generally cheap and suitable for Lithuanian environment

[@LitNoah]

also you should do video about GPPKL (Generolo Povilo Plechavičiaus kadetų licėjus) Lithuanian cadets

[@realhawaii5o]

Like the Estonian Kaitseliit

[@psichonautas]

The analog of Kaitseliit in Lithuania is Lithuanian National Defence Volunteer Forces (KASP) - a territorial defence force. Lithuanian Riflemen's Union on the other hand is a civilian NGO and not part of the official Lithuanian Armed Forces.

[@pppLT19]

It is much wider, we also have cyber security, kinology (doggos), medical, non-combat etc. etc. units. Also, we dont get paid :D

[@eruno_]

​@@psichonautas Kaitseliit members are volunteers who don't get paid (unlike LT KASP) they also have both non combat & combat functions. So I think comparison to LRU is fair.

[@realhawaii5o]

@@psichonautas I misunderstood the video then 🫣 Oops I understood they were part of the official armed forces.

[@mightymagnus]

Sweden have "Hemvärnet" ("Home Guard") which is a volunteer force. Many other countries have it, and Canada too, it is called "Canadian Rangers" (although it is very small). The White guard in Finland was something very different, it was the non-communist side in the civil war (the others being the red). Finland did have "Lotta Svärd" which was a female healthcare volunteer unit though (but had to be disbanded as a demand from Soviet).

[@LithuaniaExplained]

The Canadian Rangers are a sub-component of the Canadian Army Reserve. The Rifleman’s Union is a non profit organization and not part of the Lithuanian military, although funding comes from the government.

[@LithuaniaExplained]

@eruno_ yes… I say that in the video…

[@mightymagnus]

@@LithuaniaExplained hihi, I think this comment got in the wrong place. Hm, Home Guard (Scandinavian) are also listed as reserve, but they work as Rifleman's Union. I guess now they are a bit both, I know one guy that did military service that said they are bit two different groups within the Home Guard.

[@LithuaniaExplained]

@@mightymagnus cool, thanks for clarifying :)

[@dovis8888]

there is another unit about which you should make a video.KASP krašto apsaugos savanoriu pajėgos.having 5 thousand soldiers

[@LithuaniaExplained]

Make sure you watch the video on Friday ;)

[@klausdietrich7428]

Notion Sovereignity Private" army in 4 catastrophic situation voluntees 4 populacion security direct Support of professional nations army

[@kajusm6627]

Rifleman's over 18 years old, are in reserve of lithuanian army defense

[@donatasglinskis6155]

Incorrect, only combat riflemens are in the active military reserve. Not all adult riflemens. Combat riflemens have specific requirements, full medical inspection (same as for military) is needed, they participate in different training etc.

[@kajusm6627]

@@donatasglinskis6155 I meant what just u texted

[@ottonfiniewicz3181]

I counted approximately 20 000 Lithuanian soldiers versus 700 000 Russian soldiers. I think that Russia is terrified.

[@eruno_]

it's not about numbers. Lithuania has lower population than Moscow despite it it's still strong and independent country that has both EU & American allies.

[@ottonfiniewicz3181]

If Lithuanians think that even one German or American or British or any other country soldier will die to defend Lithuanians, I wish them the best. Poland in 1939 waited for Brits and France and Finland in 1937 waited for Brits. Results were known after WWII.

[@arunasz2443]

Bitva sredniavekovoje priMoskovje pokazalo drugoje...vi 15000 drapali ot 3000 kazhetsa? I, kak bi nakoleniach sklonilis velikomu kniažu Llitovskomu! Čhto vy psy svojo mesto nikak vspomnit nemozhete?!!!

[@viliusg950]

😅

A great a strong looking group.

[@concretejungle9608]

Well, unlike Lithuania, Canada is not geographically located in the vicinity of a 140 million-strong violent fascist zombie horde, so it doesn’t need to train their civilians in organized armed resistance

[@mlupi8720]

You, poor guys! Poor you!