News

On 29 October in Moscow during the meeting with Russia’s Minister of Foreign Affairs Sergey Lavrov, Lithuania’s Minister of Foreign Affairs Vygaudas Ušackas discussed issues of bilateral and multilateral cooperation.

Ministers V.Ušackas and S.Lavrov stressed that it was necessary to develop pragmatic and constructive bilateral relations and to create a more favourable political atmosphere between the two countries.

Minister V.Ušackas highlighted that it was the most important for Lithuania and Russia to aim together at achieving specific results, so that the citizens of the two countries would feel the benefit. According to the Minister, such mutually beneficial results could be achieved through trade without barriers, increase in volumes of transportation of goods, promotion of trade and economic cooperation, facilitated visa regime and tourism development, including the navigation in the Curonian Lagoon, as well as through cooperation on other issues.

During the meeting, the Ministers agreed to hasten the drafting and signing of bilateral agreements on traffic in border areas, cemetery maintenance, metrology, standardisation and conformance evaluation.

Ministers V.Ušackas and S.Lavrov also discussed issues of multilateral cooperation: Lithuania’s preparation for the upcoming Chairmanship of the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE), Lithuania’s Presidency of the Council of the Baltic Sea States (CBSS), the EU-Russia and NATO-Russia cooperation.

Lithuania is holding the Presidency of the CBSS from 1 July of this year until the end of June 2010. Lithuania will chair the OSCE in 2011.