News

Tbilisi, 9 November, 2005

Honourable Chairwoman,

Excellencies, Dear Members of the Parliament,

Ladies and Gentlemen,

Let me express my sincere gratitude to Nina Burjanadze for her welcoming remarks and for an opportunity to be today with you. I am truly delighted to address Georgia’s legislators during my first visit to Georgia - a country, which resembles Lithuania so strongly in its recent historical experience, size and national goals. A friend which is so close to the hearts of Lithuanians due to our shared history, solidarity and reciprocal support during the struggle for independence and liberation from the Soviet Union. A great nation, with whom Lithuania will work together to build a long lasting strategic partnership between the Black and Baltic Sea regions.

Ladies and Gentlemen,

Today I am here to convey a very simple, but very important message -- Georgia‘s success is Lithuania‘s success, and Lithuania‘s success is Georgia‘s success. I can say this whole-heartedly, because our people share the same democratic values, a belief in good neighborly relations and a genuine interest in creation of stable and prosperous societies. I can say this because our nations are united by invisible, yet strong and dear relationship of trust and friendship.

Today I am here also to express my strong belief that one day our countries will be linked not only by dynamic economic and cultural co-operation, but also by ties within Euroatlantic institutions - NATO and the European Union.

And though there is a long road ahead of us, no one can prevent us from bringing Georgia back into the family of European values. It is entirely up to our hard work, creativeness and enthusiasm to achieve the vision of Europe that connects West and East with the Black Sea region as a constituent part of its security and economic architecture.

Miss Chairman,

Now, when the nations of the Caucasus go through a turbulent period in their lives, Lithuania fully supports your efforts to establish stability and security in the South Caucasus, to unite the nation within its legitimate, historical borders and restore confidence in the State.

I know from my own experience how hard it is to consolidate the society in transition, how difficult it is to find a political agreement on political and economic reforms and goals of Euroatlantic integration. I know how challenging it is to pull out foreign troops and establish good relations with bigger and stronger neighbours; but seeing all this determination in the faces of your people, I have all the confidence that Georgia will succeed.

Looking back on the road Lithuania made to become a modern European nation, committed to democracy, rule of law, and free market economy, I would name several building blocks that were of the utmost importance to us.

First, Lithuanians have never given up its principles and values for narrow pragmatic interests. We did not sell our independence for cheaper oil nor did we trade our goal to join NATO for any sort of unilateral guarantees.

Second, our political and academic establishment was able to agree on the issues of major importance to the country, such as market reforms and foreign policy goals. Third, a little help from outside contributed significantly to the success of ongoing reforms.

Today all of these issues are critical not only in Tbilisi, but all along the promising axis of the new Black Sea democracies, including Ukraine and Moldova.

Therefore, I strongly applaud President Mikhail Saakashvili’s initiative of signing the National Consensus Declaration on the main foreign policy goals by all political parties of Georgia, both in government and in opposition. Our experience has taught us that having a united domestic political stance on eurointegration issues is crucial for the successful and legitimate talks with your foreign partners. It is critical to agree on strategic goals in order to make transition as successful and swift as possible.

Ladies and Gentleman,

Let me say a couple of words about my vision of the Black Sea Region in the broader European context and what I would like to suggest to Georgia’s leaders during my visit to Tbilisi.

Let me start by frankly admitting that up to now your region has not been on the “radar screens” of the European Union. Everything what Europe have achieved in the region, which is locked between Russia, fast-changing Turkey and the Central Asia, fell far short of the word “VISION”.

Our European foreign and security policy was passive and reactive, while our attempts to unfreeze solution of the so-called “frozen conflicts” and assist Georgia to reestablish its territorial integrity were perhaps too cautious. Europe has largely failed to grasp the opportunities offered by this region in terms of political and economic security, energy supplies and people-to-people contacts, which would enrich European and transatlantic identity.

One might look for reasons why Europe was slow, to put it mildly, to show the real interest in the Black Sea Region. However, this is not a time to look back – this is a time to move on.

And right now events are unfolding rapidly. The recently started accession negotiations with Turkey and Croatia are creating a new political climate, which contributes to bringing the EU and its Eastern neighbors closer. I believe this could open the door to pan-European integration, the final vision of which is a new Europe, unified by virtue of its values, free trade and single market.

Although there are many skeptics in the West and even more in the East who do not see the Black Sea Region as part of the European architecture, all agree that our chances for achieving this objective have greatly improved during the last few years.

Those improvements, first and foremost, have been brought about by  YOU - Georgia, Ukraine and Moldova, a group of New Democracies. Georgia’s determination and collective action to go ahead with serious political and legal reforms is redrawing the maps and changing geopolitics not only in the Caucasus, but also in Europe. And Europeans will have to respond to this in an adequate manner.

Secondly, there is a growing perception that the recent enlargement of NATO and the European Union by definition does not guarantee democracy in the European neighborhood and beyond.

The European Union needs to see and go one step further building true partnerships with emerging democracies along the Black and Caspian Sea axis. By doing its “home work” reforms -- tackling corruption, reducing the size of shadow economy and improving administrative capabilities, Georgia could help us develop these partnerships more quickly.

Lithuania is eager to provide practical advice and support for your reforms. In fact, we have a lot to share, as we went through similar reforms just few years ago and now we know its “nuts and bolts”. As I speak, our experts and NGOs are working with your professionals on how to harmonize Georgia’s and EU’s legislation. Georgia’s military officers study in Vilnius at our Military Academy. Projects are on the way to develop transport links between the ports of Poti and Klaipėda that will accelerate our bilateral trade.

Ladies and Gentlemen,

To put it short -- Europe has neither moral nor historical right to deny the nations in the Black Sea Region the possibility to share the same transatlantic institutions. On the contrary, we have a responsibility to bring these nations back to Europe, a part of cultural and Christian tradition of which they were from the time Mtskheta was build.

These words bring me to the last point of my speech.

How could we break the strategic isolation of the Black Sea Region and transform it into a community of stable, prosperous countries, attractive to all the people living in it? What should be your and our priorities on the road ahead? Let me address these issues one by one.

We should start from a small, yet very important and visible thing – sharing regional experience and building regional identity in the Black Sea and the South Caucasus Regions. It is a proven fact that regional partnerships create synergies that push the boundaries of the possible, thus opening new venues for cooperation and modernization.

In the Baltics, we achieved a lot by creating a wide network of multidimensional partnerships that link State actors, businesses and NGOs in pursuit of regional interests in areas of economic and social development. In fact, Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia acting under motto “one for all, and all for one”, were much stronger when negotiating their way to the Euroatlantic family in Europe and the United States.

Having made dramatic progress in all spheres of political and economic life in the last two years, Georgia today is an undisputable leader and initiator of the consolidation and region building processes in the Caucasus. Your role in bringing Ukraine and Moldova into the emerging Community of Democratic Choice is a magnificent example of how a small country can change the political outlook of the whole region, and even become the gravity centre of that region.

I am sure that your further efforts to consolidate the Black Sea region will facilitate solution of the “frozen” conflicts in the neighborhood of Georgia, between Armenians and Azeris. They will also facilitate the involvement of the major stakeholders – USA and EU – in the regional affairs.

Eventually, regional integration will help Russia to take its place as a responsible and open stakeholder in the neighborhood affairs, thus changing its role from “influence maker” to “partnership builder”.

Miss Chairwoman,

Today Georgia and Lithuania are on the fast track of our cooperation efforts. Last fall, when I hosted President Saakashvili in Vilnius we established a strategic link between our two capitals. Few weeks ago our chiefs of diplomacy invited other Baltic and South Caucasian nations to develop cross-regional ties in the “three plus three” format. As I speak, our Foreign Ministers are key-note speakers at the Friends of Georgia meeting in Bucharest, developing the agenda of the forthcoming meetings of the Community of Democratic Choice emerging along the axis of Kiev, Tbilisi and Vilnius.

I have high hopes that along this road our parliaments also will play an important role developing people-to-people contacts, raising a new generation of leaders and experts who not only look West, but act and think West. Cooperation between the Baltic and South Caucasian legislators would be a good starting point for establishment of a strategic Baltic and Black Sea partnership, and a way to engage in the broader, strategic discussions.

Ladies and Gentleman,

It is true – today we cannot set any specific dates when - and if - the European Union and the Black Sea Region countries will be prepared to start membership talks. What we can do today, though, is to work hard and bring such a day closer, involve NATO and the European Union in the efforts to build prosperity and safety in the region.

Harmonization of our legislation, liberalization and enhancement of trade, connecting the East and the West of Europe through energy and transport hubs – all of these are priorities that must be backed by Georgia’s parliament and government, by the strong and unanimous EU Neighborhood Policy, as well as by a coherent NATO policy.

True, these practical steps will take a lot of our efforts, attention and financial resources in the years to come. But it is worth every euro and every minute of our time, as the Rose and Orange revolutions showed the desire of people for freedom, prosperity and the rule of law.

Today we have no other choice but to continue on the road to European and transatlantic vision, where Georgia will take its seat as a full member of a democratic community. I wish you all the best in your truly inspiring and challenging endeavors. Thank you for your attention.