News

On 4 December in Brussels, Lithuanian Vice-Minister of Foreign Affairs Vytautas Leškevičius, who is attending a meeting of NATO Ministers of Foreign Affairs and an informal meeting of the NATO-Russia Council, spoke out in favour of constructive NATO-Russia relations based on the principle of reciprocity. However, he also expressed concern about the accumulation of military arms in the Kaliningrad region.

“Lithuania is for a constructive cooperation between the Alliance and Russia. As an example, we can name a project of scientists from Klaipėda and Kaliningrad for oil spill decontamination in the Baltic Sea,” Leškevičius said.

The Vice-Minister also called for the deepening of a practical NATO-Russia cooperation and the use of modern technologies for the destruction of unused ammunition in the Kaliningrad region.

The on-going meeting of the Alliance’s Ministers of Foreign Affairs discussed Turkey’s request to deploy Patriot missile batteries to Turkey. Lithuania along with other Alliance’s allies supported Turkey’s request. This air and missile defence system will deter threats to and defend Turkey.

When speaking about the implementation of NATO’s partnerships policy, the Vice-Minister highlighted the importance of cooperation with the partners that contribute significantly to NATO’s operations.

“The close cooperation between Sweden and Finland is a perfect example of what it has to look like. Therefore, we support an intensified engagement in NATO’s preparations for operations and exercises,” Leškevičius said.

The Vice-Minister stressed the importance of NATO’s open door policy and noted the progress that had been made by the candidate countries.