News

Dear Colleagues,

Ladies and gentlemen,

First of all, I would like to thank organizers for the invitation and the opportunity to share Lithuania’s views on European Neighbourhood policy.

Being on the border of the EU, Lithuania is exposed to certain opportunities and challenges. The opportunities come from the ability to project to the East the values of democracy, free market, rule of law, respect for human rights, freedom of speech, secular multiculturalism, and good governance. Our credibility to do so comes from our experience of successful social, economic and political transformations. That’s why we devote a sizable portion of our actions in helping to formulate Euro-Atlantic awareness and aspirations, promote democracy and rule of law, regional cooperation, solve frozen conflicts in our neighbouring countries from Moldova to Caucasus.

The ENP is a young policy, and much remains to be done. Ambitious reform agendas, which have been set out in the agreed Action Plans, can only be achieved in the longer haul. European Union has to use its “transforming” power in order to continue actively projecting stability and security beyond its borders.

As the Commission has concluded in its communication of 4 December 2006, progress achieved under the ENP has confirmed the great potential of this long-term policy. The ENP constitutes the main tool in support of political and economic reform agendas in neighbouring countries both in Eastern Europe and around the Mediterranean. The first eighteen policy implementation months have laid the foundation for significant progress – and this is reflected in clearly visible developments across many policy areas.

Estimating progress made, EU still should move forward with visa facilitation in respect of those ENP countries that are ready to sign readmission agreements. Much of work is already in progress with Ukraine and Moldova, but a discriminatory situation has emerged in Georgia where the EU visa policy runs counter to the territorial integrity. Therefore I think it’s urgent to prepare a mandate on visa facilitation to Georgia.

Another good incentive for ENP countries would be the development of free trade area and gradual integration of ENP countries into the EU’s market. Some neighbours, especially those participating in Barcelona Process, already have such a perspective. So, Trade Preferences for Moldova and free trade negotiations mandate for Georgia are at the top of the priority list.

Thirdly, the EU should continue to actively engage in the resolution of the conflicts in the Neighbourhood area. Great work is being done by the EU Special representatives in Moldova and Georgia, and we should lend our full support to them and look at the possibilities to further enhance their missions. The EU also should not exclude the possibility of using ESDP as a tool and proposing modifications for existing peace-keeping formats in order to overcome the impasses.

Eastern Europe plays a strategic role in the promotion of the EU security debate and there are several reasons why they cannot be isolated from the rest of Europe by trade or visa barriers. First, Eastern Neighbours represent a 70-million wide market and a significant source of skilful labour force which can be easily integrated with the Western European cultural environment. Second, Eastern Neighbours occupy a strategic location between European Union and its major energy supplies in the East (incl. Russia, Central Asia and Iran). Third, Eastern Neighbours, and especially Ukraine, represent a litmus test of Russia’s democratic transformation. If democratic reforms succeed in the Eastern Europe, Russia might follow the lead.

There is a clear geopolitical necessity to transfer stability to our neighbourhood, and this is critical in order to reach strategic goals, to tackle the challenges we face and to reap the substantial benefits of closer political and economic ties.

Ladies and gentlemen,

although the core of the ENP lies in the area of practical cooperation and main expectations are related to the concrete and tangible results, the ENP should not be regarded as rather technical matter. It must be driven by a political vision.

Creating a space of stability and shared common values beyond the EU’s borders, first of all we need to place the concept of ‘Europeanism’ at the heart of our discussion.

East European region today represents the ‘unfinished business’ of European security architecture and needs further improvement. Combining the Eastern Neighbours with the “European Neighbours” in general (including Norway, Switzerland, European mini-states) and drawing on their cooperation experience with the EU, could mark a strategic breakthrough in the EU’s line of thinking.

We need to change the context of the discussion by integrating the Eastern Neighbours into the broader framework of ‘European Neighbours’. Way to go would be to find a niche for East Europeans in a broader European debate, establishing a ‘Europe-to-Europe’ dialogue, which could include the EU and all its European neighbours in the north, east and south-east. Such cooperation would allow all European Neighbours participate in discussions on all relevant topics - namely trade, transport, energy, visa facilitation and other - as equal subjects rather than offshoots of larger EU interests. Mentioned partnership framework should not be associated with EU membership or enlargement but, rather, about addressing together the common challenges to Europe at large. My understanding is that neither ENP nor our idea on ‘Europe-to-Europe’ dialogue should be interpreted as a substitute to EU enlargement; nor should it be regarded as a kind of membership action plan. EU enlargement rules are clearly defined in the Treaty.

Integrating Eastern Neighbours with ‘European Neighbours’ in general would give the opportunity to have a platform of multilateral cooperation of the EU with all its European neighbours. Europe-to-Europe cooperation could include various forms (for example parliamentary assembly, multilateral conferences of foreign and sectorial ministers, committees on regional partnership programs and ect.) and translate into three strategic partnerships:

- Political and Security Partnership, providing a closer political dialogue in such areas as human rights, development, and foreign policy, as well as closer EU’s involvement in conflict resolution.

- Economic and Financial Partnership, which would remove the existing trade barriers and establish free trade with EU. Full integration would also evolve in such areas as energy, transport, and, perhaps, financial institutions.

- Social, Cultural and Human Partnership, resulting in free movement of people and the eventual integration of European Neighbours with the existing EU academic and social programs and instruments.

In this context I would like to single out and welcome recent proposal by European Parliament on establishing EU-Neighborhood-East Parliamentary Assembly - “EURO-NEST”, which also would include pro-democracy observers from Belarus.

The long term effect of successful cooperation in a Europe-to-Europe format would be the new understanding of what Europe is and, perhaps, Europe’s greater cohesion within those new limits.

Thank you for your attention.