U.S. embassies have not opened in the capitals of Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia and normal consular assistance is not yet available for U.S. citizens, the State Department said Saturday.
The United States officially recognized the independence of the three Baltic republics last week, but no personnel have been named to the posts in Vilnius, Lithuania; Riga, Latvia; and Tallinn, Estonia."Until an embassy is open and fully staffed, the United States cannot extend normal consular assistance to U.S. citizens," the department said in a news release warning Americans about travel to the three countries.
It said medical care in the three countries does not meet Western standards and that there is a severe shortage of basic medical supplies.
The travel advisories issued Saturday had been downgraded from a caution to a notice. The department also eliminated referreferences to unrest in the republics.
The three Baltic republics, annexed by the Soviet Union during World War II, accelerated their secession drive after last month's failed coup in Moscow by Kremlin hard-liners.