In Paris, the Vice-Minister of Lithuania and the State Minister of Japan discuss strengthening bilateral ties and support for Ukraine's reconstruction

On 2 June, the Vice-Minister of Foreign Affairs of Lithuania, Sigitas Mitkus, met with the State Minister for Foreign Affairs of Japan, Fujii Hisayuki, at the OECD Ministerial Council meeting in Paris. The meeting focused on strengthening bilateral relations, security and defence cooperation, and support for the reconstruction of Ukraine.
Mitkus called on tapping into the potential of economic relations between Lithuania and Japan by developing bilateral trade, promoting investment, and strengthening cooperation in the field of life sciences. Japanese representatives were invited to participate in the Life Sciences Baltics, the life sciences forum in Vilnius on 17-18 September. The Vice-Minister of Lithuania and the State Minister of Japan also discussed Lithuania's active participation in EXPO 2025 in Japan, where the visits of the President and Prime Minister of Lithuania are planned shortly. In addition, the Vice-Minister and the State Minister were glad at the successful event on economic resilience that Lithuania and Japan held on the margins of the OECD Ministerial Council meeting.
During the meeting, the Vice-Minister and the State Minister discussed the strengthening of bilateral cooperation in the areas of security and defence, as well as geopolitical challenges facing Europe and the Indo-Pacific region. They highlighted the importance of a closer dialogue in response to the changing security environment.
Mitkus presented the projects initiated by Lithuania for the reconstruction of Ukraine and invited Japan to join in their implementation.
"By marrying up Lithuania's experience in Ukraine and Japan's economic and development cooperation competencies, we can create a strategic, results-oriented partnership for the reconstruction of Ukraine", stressed Mitkus.
The Vice-Minister and the State Minister agreed to strengthen coordination on support for Ukraine in international formats, including at the Ukraine Recovery Conference, which will be held in Rome on 10–11 July.