News

On 24 August, at the annual meeting of Baltic and German foreign ministers in Germany, the island of Rügen, Lithuanian Minister of Foreign Affairs Audronius Ažubalis stressed the necessity to enhance the functioning of the information system of the Schengen area and expressed concern about the plans of third countries to construct unsafe nuclear power plants at the Lithuanian border.

According to A.Ažubalis, it is necessary to search for organizational and technical solutions to enhance the Schengen information system, and, first of all, to give particular attention to rewriting and entering of personal names into the database.

“This year we have been facing a number of practical challenges that demonstrate the need to strengthen Schengen mechanisms. This has to be done in order to avoid technical errors, which may have political consequences, and to ensure the safety of the Schengen area, as well as the credibility of free movement in the European Union,” A.Ažubalis said.

According to the Minister, another matter of concern for Lithuania is that nuclear power plants in Kaliningrad and Belarus are being constructed in breach of international safety standards.

A.Ažubalis drew attention of his counterparts to the recent incident in the Leningrad-2 nuclear power plant. The Leningrad-2 NPP is a prototype of the nuclear power plants that are planned to be constructed also in Lithuania’s neighborhood, i.e., on the EU border.

Minister A.Ažubalis together with Latvian, Estonian and German Foreign Ministers Girts Valdis Kristovskis, Urmas Paet and Guido Westerwelle also celebrated the 20th anniversary of the re-establishment of diplomatic relations of the Baltic countries and Germany, and of the restoration of Independence of the Baltic States.

Ministers discussed debt-induced financial difficulties of some euro-zone countries, EU Financial Perspectives 2014-2020, relations with Russia, policy of the Eastern Partnership, strengthening of energy security in the Baltic States and other issues.

Chairman-in-Office of the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) A.Ažubalis acquainted the participants with the organization’s efforts to resolve protracted conflicts, enhance the human rights situation in Central Asia and in other countries.

The OSCE Chairman-in-Office thanked Germany for its ongoing efforts to resume the negotiations in the 5+2 format on the solution of the Transnistrian conflict.

Another Baltic and German foreign ministers’ meeting will be held in 2012.