More than 30 years after leaving the Soviet Union, Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania will join the EU's grid.

A new era starts in the Baltic countries on February 8. On that day, Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia are switching off their connection to the Russian electricity grid, 10 months ahead of schedule. The move is merely symbolic,

VILNIUS - Lithuania said on Saturday it had disconnected its electricity system from Russia's power grid, part of a plan which the three Baltic states say will integrate them more closely with the European Union and boost security.