News

On 8 March, Foreign Minister Antanas Valionis met the foreign ministers of all ten states seeking NATO membership in Skopje, the capital of the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia. At the conference held in Lithuanian capital Vilnius in 2000, these countries initiated the “Vilnius Process” to secure mutual support and co-operation in seeking NATO membership and to sustain the development on the enlargement issue. Speaking at the meeting in Skopje, Antanas Valionis underscored that the Vilnius Group countries should be interested in NATO remaining a strong defensive organization. The Foreign Minister said that though considerable progress had been made in many fields of preparation for membership, the countries should not make any pause satisfied with their achievements, but should work on the continuation of reforms and further implementation of the Membership Action Plan proposed by the Alliance.The spirit of solidarity of the Vilnius Ten should be maintained after the Prague Summit in October this year, where the Alliance is expected to consider the invitation of new members. Minister Valionis invited his colleagues to the next Vilnius Ten foreign ministers’ meeting in Lithuania after the NATO Prague Summit. In a joint statement, the participants of the meeting encouraged Croatia, which has been taking part in the “Vilnius Process” since 2001, to join the Membership Action Plan, which is being implemented by all the candidate states. The issues on ensuring security and stability in the Balkan Region and international fight against terrorism were also discussed at the meeting. All the participants recognized the importance of Vilnius Ten solidarity spirit as their respective nations proceed with the integration into NATO.