The political parties of the Republic of Lithuania,

Considering the transformed geopolitical environment of Lithuania and noting a qualitative change of the Lithuanian foreign policy after the country’s accession to NATO, the European Union and other international organisations, 

Acknowledging that ensuring national security remains a priority goal of the nation and the State,  

Desiring to ensure the continuity of the foreign policy based on the consensus between the political parties and broad public endorsement,

Being guided by the Resolution of the Seimas of the Republic of Lithuania of 1 May 2004 concerning the guidelines for the Lithuanian foreign policy after accession to NATO and the European Union, and calling on the political parties to conclude an agreement on the main guidelines for the national foreign policy for 2004-2008,

Have concluded this Agreement on the main goals and objectives of Lithuania’s foreign policy for 2004-2008 as well as conditions necessary for their achievement.

1. The main principles of Lithuania’s foreign policy

The political parties welcome successful integration of Lithuania into NATO, the European Union and other international institutions. This goal was achieved by pursuing an open and active foreign policy broadly endorsed by Lithuanian political parties, and in close co-operation with the Lithuanian society.  The political parties remain committed to these principles of openness, effectiveness and co-operation.

Membership of the Euro-Atlantic structures and other international organisations contributes to higher security and well being of the people of Lithuania as well as ensures better conditions for the development of the state and the nation. Noting that foreign and internal policies are closely inter-related and effectively compliment each other, the political parties are committed to bring the benefits of this membership to every citizen of Lithuania.

The status of Lithuania as a full-fledged member of NATO and the European Union enhances the country’s responsibility for adherence to democratic values and international norms across the world, as well as for successful development of relations between states, cultures and civilisations.

While acting in the Euro-Atlantic structures and international organisations, Lithuania should continue to pursue an active foreign policy aimed in particular at broadening and deepening the integration of the member states of the European Union whilst taking due account of the national interests of Lithuania; consolidation of NATO as the main component of the Euro-Atlantic security and as the key instrument in the fight against contemporary threats; broader involvement of NATO, the European Union and other international organisations in securing peace and stability and spreading the democratic values across the world, and ensuring the continuity of the “open door” policy vis-à-vis other countries and regions. 

Lithuania is committed to take active part in these processes, acting as a pro-active and reliable member of the European Union and NATO, and as a valued and prominent state of the region.

2. Long-term goals of the Lithuanian foreign policy

The political parties declare that the long-term priority of the Lithuanian foreign policy is to ensure, through diplomatic means, a secure environment for the democratic development of the state and the nation in the face of new possibilities and threats by exploiting the advantages of good bilateral relations cultivated by Lithuania, by capitalizing on the country’s membership in NATO, the European Union and other international organisations and by strengthening Lithuania as a pro-active and respectable modern nation. 

The political parties are unanimous in their belief that Lithuania can achieve this goal by becoming a dynamic and attractive centre of interregional cooperation, which spreads the Euro-Atlantic values and the spirit of tolerance and co-operation across the borders and unites cultures and civilisations. 

To achieve this goal Lithuania should:

- strengthen its position in NATO, the European Union and other international institutions and participate actively and fully in the decision making process of these structures;

- make use of its geographical, historical and cultural advantages as well as broaden its experience of good neighbourly relations;

- strengthen the role of NATO and the European Union on the international arena, ensure effective action of the Euro-Atlantic structures and promote Euro-Atlantic co-operation and dissemination of the Euro-Atlantic values.

3. The main goals of the Lithuanian foreign policy for 2004-2008

The political parties have agreed on the following main goals of the Lithuanian foreign policy for 2004-2008:

1) To foster the transatlantic relations of Lithuania and of the European Union and to strengthen co-operation with the North American states, and in particular with the United States of America; to adhere to the principle that NATO is the main organisation of collective security, which guarantees the security of Lithuania; to ensure Lithuania’s participation in the NATO-led operations and other international missions undertaken to support peace, protect human rights and guarantee adherence to other international norms; to seek the support of the United Nations and of the international community for these operations and missions; to ensure effective delivery of all obligations of the membership in NATO and other international organisations, and to support actively the policy of enlargement of the European Union and NATO. 

2) To support further integration within the European Union whilst taking due account of  the national interests of Lithuania; to create the Union governed by effective institutions and based on democratic legitimacy, transparent and effective decision making and equality of the member states; to support the most advanced forms of co-operation within the European Union, which are open to all member states, and take an active part in these co-operative activities, and to ensure a successful participation of Lithuania in the formation of the common foreign and security policy, which the European Union has undertaken to develop. 

3) To promote and expand regional co-operation and strengthen the position of Lithuania as a centre of interregional co-operation; to foster co-operation between the three Baltic states; to further develop the strategic partnership with Poland; to initiate and implement new formats of regional co-operation, uniting the states of Northern, Central and Eastern Europe; to support democratic processes in Ukraine, Belarus, Moldova, the countries of the South Caucasus and the Russian Federation, in particular the Kaliningrad region.

The political parties recognize that these goals will not be accomplished unless a Lithuanian foreign policy strategy and its action plan are drafted and necessary preconditions for the implementation of these instruments are created. The political parties commit themselves to secure adequate funds for the implementation of the envisaged measures of the foreign policy.

4. The main objectives of the Lithuanian foreign policy for 2004-2008  

Being committed to achieve through concerted efforts the main goals of the foreign policy, the political parties represented in the Seimas undertake the following commitments:

1) To ratify the Treaty Establishing a Constitution for Europe by the middle of 2005; to take all administrative measures and ensure macroeconomic and other conditions necessary for the earliest possible accession of Lithuania to the Economic and Monetary Union and the Schengen area, and for satisfying the EU and NATO standards in the fields of border protection, competition, public administration, etc., and to prepare properly for Lithuania’s chairmanship in the European Union.

2) To continue active involvement in international missions and operations; to seek the support of the United Nations for these missions and operations as well as broad international participation in them; to support effectively the efforts of the international community to combat terrorism; to strengthen solidarity of the EU and NATO member states, and to ensure the delivery of Lithuania’s commitments in the area of defence. 

3) To strive for the strengthening of co-operation of Russia, Ukraine, Belarus, Moldova and the countries of the South Caucasus with the European Union and NATO and  participate actively in it; to support the integration policy of the countries aspiring for membership of the European Union and NATO; to seek to conclude free trade agreement with these countries and thus contribute to the development of the European Neighbourhood Policy; to encourage social and economic development of the Kaliningrad region of the Russian Federation as well as the involvement of this region and the entire Russia in the processes of European co-operation.

4) To explore possible ways for the interconnection of Lithuania’s infrastructure networks with the EU infrastructure systems, pooling for this purpose financial resources from the national budget, private capital and international funds; to improve transport links with Western Europe, first of all with the capital city of Poland; to raise at the international level the issue of energy security of the Baltic states and to seek practical solution to this issue.

5) To deepen Lithuania’s economic co-operation with the states of the region and promote export and investment; to develop a system for supporting Lithuanian investment abroad; to attract foreign financial recourses for the implementation of national programmes and strategies, targeting in particular the development of modern knowledge economy in Lithuania.

6) To strengthen Lithuania’s position as a centre of information and cultural exchange; to increase allocations from the national budget for the programmes of cultural and academic exchange; to strengthen the national information policy; to approve the national strategy of public relations and ensure its adequate funding. 

7) To ensure the protection of the Lithuanian language and culture abroad; to develop and implement programmes encouraging active involvement of the Lithuanian communities abroad in Lithuania’s life as well as supporting cultural and public activities of these communities in their respective countries; to strengthen the status of the Lithuanian language as a full-fledged instrument of communication in the European Union institutions. 

8) To support the efforts of the international community to eradicate poverty and to head off other modern threats; to implement the policy for aid and development approved by the Government of Lithuania.       

9) To contribute to further development of Lithuania’s relations within the multilateral formats; to take active part in the work of international organisations in order to strengthen the international standing of Lithuania; to seek for Lithuania’s presidency over the OSCE in 2010, and membership of the UN Security Council for 2014-2015; to promote and establish Vilnius as a centre of international conferences and initiatives and a residence place of various international organisations and their divisions.

10) To raise public awareness of the main foreign policy goals and promote public discussions on foreign policy issues; to encourage co-operation of non-governmental organisations with foreign partners; to ensure broad public endorsement for foreign policy pursued by the Government; to encourage active involvement of the civic society in the formation and implementation of foreign policy; to strengthen analytical and prognostic capacities of the State of Lithuania. 

For the Labour Party                                                             

For the Christian Conservatives Social Union                   

For the Liberal Democratic Party                                         

For the Liberal and Centre Union                       

For the Lithuanian Christian Democratic Party         

For the Lithuanian Poles’ Electoral Action                                

For the Lithuanian Russians’ Union                                          

For the Lithuanian Social Democratic Party                             

For the Lithuanian Social Democratic Union                             

For the Lithuanian Centre Union                                          

For the New Union (Social Liberals)                                  

For the Homeland Union (Lithuanian Conservatives)   

For the Union of Farmers’ Party and New Democracy Party    

Done in Vilnius on 5 October 2004