Lazdijai is a city in Lithuania

Lithuania

Lithuania , officially the Republic of Lithuania is a country in Northern Europe, the biggest of the three Baltic states. It is situated along the southeastern shore of the Baltic Sea, whereby to the west lie Sweden and Denmark...

 located about 7 km (4.3 mi) east of the border with Poland

Poland

Poland , officially the Republic of Poland , is a country in Central Europe bordered by Germany to the west; the Czech Republic and Slovakia to the south; Ukraine, Belarus and Lithuania to the east; and the Baltic Sea and Kaliningrad Oblast, a Russian exclave, to the north...

. In 1990 Lithuania declared independence from the Soviet Union

Soviet Union

The Soviet Union , officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , was a constitutionally socialist state that existed in Eurasia between 1922 and 1991....

, and new check points between the borders Poland and Lithuania were established and Lazdijai became the center that oversees and continues to regulate these operations. It is the birthplace of Lithuanian politician and producer Arūnas Valinskas

Arunas Valinskas

Arūnas Valinskas is a Lithuanian politician. He was speaker of the Seimas...

 and of Russian-American composer and violinist Joseph Achron

Joseph Achron

Joseph Yulyevich Achron, also seen as Akhron was a Russian composer and violinist of Jewish origin, settled in USA. His preoccupation with Jewish elements and his desire to develop a 'Jewish' harmonic and contrapuntal idiom, underscored and informed much of his work...

.