Lietuvos istorijos institutas

The article discusses the peculiarities of soviet and party cadre policy in the Lithuanian SSR in 1944–1953. The Kremlin not only urged the Lithuanian leaders to ‚purge‘ the administrative apparatus of bourgeois cadres more quickly, but also criticised the republic's party leaders for "weakly promoting" Lithuanians loyal to the Soviet government to leadership positions. The Communist Party of Lithuania actively carried out both tasks: first of all, the central institutions of republic were "cleansed" of unreliable bourgeois cadres and Lithuanians were "promoted" to the Soviet administrative and economic apparatus in the provinces. Moscow was satisfied with the pace and nature of the "promotion" of Lithuanians into the administrative and bureaucratic apparatus. This personnel policy was in the interests of the First Secretary of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of Lithuania (Bolshevik) Antanas Sniečkaus – the Lithuanians were placed where they were most needed – in the local government. In the spring of 1953, taking advantage of the resolutions of the CPSU Central Committee, A. Sniečkus initiated the Lithuanisation of the Party-Soviet power elite of the republic. Lithuanian party figures were nominated to the leading posts of the party and government. The number of Lithuanians in the party apparatus at all levels increased.