Why did the Taryba declare Lithuanian independence on February 16, 1918?

The Taryba (Lithuanian Council) proclaimed Lithuania’s independence on February 16, 1918, following a congress of 214 delegates held in Vilnius in September 1917. This congress had formally called for the creation of an independent Lithuanian state within its ethnic frontiers, with Vilnius as its capital.12

At the time of the declaration, Lithuania was under German military occupation, which had begun in late 1915. The German administration had authorized the 1917 congress with the intention of establishing a Lithuanian state that would function as a satellite of Germany following the conclusion of World War I. While the Taryba’s proclamation was a critical step toward sovereignty, true independence was not realized until the collapse of German forces in the west in November 1918.123