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Dear Chairman of the Baltic Development Forum,

Dear Uffe, Distinguished guests,

Ladies and gentlemen,

Thank you for this opportunity to speak at the concluding part of the Baltic Development Summit. It gives me a possibility to summarize the two days of  discussions of this prestigious annual regional forum. After the excellent event here in Stockholm we will be proud to host the following Summit in Vilnius next June.

After the adoption of the EU Strategy of the Baltic Sea Region later this month by the European Council, it will become a powerful engine of the region’s full integration, enhanced competitiveness and new opportunities for all of us. I would like to thank Sweden for being at the forefront of this process both as a determined supporter of the Baltic Sea integration and the current President of the European Union. I assure you that the strategy will take a prominent place on the agenda of the Lithuanian Presidency in 2013.   

Connectivity

20 years after the fall of the Berlin Wall, the Baltic Sea region still has a number of problems to tackle. Sea pollution, lack of connections, disparities in economic development – these are well-known challenges. For example, today neighbouring Vilnius and Gdansk can best be reached via Copenhagen while rail travel between Vilnius and Warsaw takes more than ten hours.

Obviously, connectivity and accessibility are among the shapers of our region’s international competitiveness. Connectivity stimulates local and regional markets and offers the means to overcome economic disparities between different parts of our region. In this context, implementation of Rail Baltica is crucially important in terms of solving the questions of mobility, transportation and logistics. 

As regards the energy sector, Lithuania welcomes the Baltic Energy Market Interconnection Plan (BEMIP), which was elaborated in a relatively short period of time. BEMIP is proof that where there is a  strong political will and cooperative atmosphere, we can reach consensus and come up with a common strategy. BEMIP will contribute to addressing the issues of remaining isolated energy markets in Europe and decrease dependency on a single external energy supplier. We must now focus on implementing the project in the most efficient way.

The Baltic Sea strategy is not only about solving problems and challenges but also about opportunities. The creation of an economically strong and competitive Baltic Sea region which is also a leader in innovations is among the top priorities of the Strategy. To this end we must enhance cross-Baltic cooperation in developing and integrating universities, clusters, centers of excellence and improving knowledge mobility. This is the best way to ensure cohesion and sustainable development of the region and to improve our ability to withstand economic difficulties.

Value sharing/governance

We have a strong interest and an important objective to share our common values and best practices of the Baltic Sea cooperation with our neighbours. We should become more open to cross-border cooperation promoting a common area of democracy, stability, sustainable economic growth and communication among people. Greater openness towards our Eastern neighbours would offer new opportunities for investment, trade and tourism, as well as people-to-people contacts and overall confidence building. This is a high priority for Lithuania’s Presidency of the Council of the Baltic Sea States.

Belarus, which shares a rich historical heritage with Lithuania and has strong ties with the Baltic Sea region, has indicated an interest to engage more actively in our cooperation. I believe we should use this opportunity to promote democracy, the rule of law, good governance and the development of a vibrant civil society among our Belarusian neighbours.

The Baltic Sea Region could be a model for its Eastern neighbours by showing that it is possible to be globally competitive while taking social and environmental dimensions into account. Our partners in the East should understand that our strength lies in our ability to adapt ourselves to the most urgent challenges of the day, to promote social and economic stability through a diverse range of means, such as enlargement, political dialogue, trade policy, crisis management and human rights, as well as development of research and innovations.

Further reduction and eventual elimination of existing barriers for the movement of people, goods and services in the region should be considered as one of our key objectives. 

Russia/trade

The Baltic Sea Region has always been an important area of cooperation between the EU and Russia. In fact, cooperation with Russia in the Baltic Sea Region can be seen as a litmus-test for the development of overall EU-Russia relations.  

Kaliningrad Region has a very important role for the future of an integrated and competitive Baltic Sea area. Given its geographic and geopolitical situation, Kaliningrad Region has a natural potential for cooperation with the EU and can become a model for developing overall EU-Russia relations.

However, successful cooperation requires mutual will to engage from all relevant parties. As far as mutual will goes, we are unfortunately witnessing renewed Russian attempts to protecting its domestic market. Just recently we had to tackle the issue of Lithuanian freight carriers being held up on the border with Russia and restrictions on the import of dairy products. We had managed to resolve the issue back then. Now, however, new barriers are being imposed on the export of Lithuanian dairy products.

We need to keep reminding our trade partners, wherever they are, that this is not the way to go forward. At times of economic difficulties the solution is openness, not protectionism; more free trade, not less. I hope we can bring this essential truth home to our Russian neighbours- also for the sake of the common benefit of enhancing the global competitiveness of the entire Baltic region in an increasingly interdependent world.

Ladies and gentlemen,

I am convinced that the EU Strategy for the Baltic Sea Region will provide a fresh impetus to our cooperation. Once the strategy is adopted, this ground-breaking document needs to be urgently translated into practice. The strategy’s success will be measured against the expectations of our people. For these expectations to be met, we need to act in full awareness that we are in this together, <leaving behind our occasional differences and> focusing our concerted efforts on the tasks ahead.  Enhanced NB8 cooperation, including its greater visibility and participation in global decision- making, would also work for the benefit of the entire region.  

Thank you.