General Affairs Council discusses security challenges facing EU and its neighbourhood
On 7 March in Brussels, the Vice-Minister of Foreign Affairs of Lithuania Albinas Zananavičius attended the EU’s General Affairs Council meeting, which finalised preparations for the March European Council by discussing the topics of internal market and economy, security and defence, migration and external relations.
“The EU must maintain an open and strong trade policy, when combating unfair trade practices and avoiding the possibility of the spread of protectionism on a global scale, especially in the area of energy,” said Lithuania’s Foreign Vice-Minister. To achieve economic growth and the creation of new jobs, it is necessary to strengthen the internal market in the fields of services, digital agenda, and energy.
As regards security and defence, Lithuania’s Foreign Vice-Minister stressed the need to improve the EU’s resilience to security challenges, especially resilience against hybrid threats. The EU must continue to play an active role also in the neighbourhood, contributing to partners’ capacity building in this area.
According to Lithuania’s Foreign Minister, the EU must give enhanced attention to the Western Balkans region, where the growth of third parties’ influence that undermines the European choice of the Western Balkans has been observed.
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