LINKEVIČIUS MEETS WITH DIRECTOR GENERAL FOR ENLARGEMENT AT THE EUROPEAN COMMISSION, STRESSES LITHUANIA’S RESOLVE TO IMPLEMENT EU’S VIABLE ENLARGEMENT POLICY
As Lithuania’s Presidency of the EU Council staring in July is nearing, high-ranking EU officials are visiting the country almost every day. On 15 May, the Lithuanian Minister of Foreign Affairs met with Stefano Sannino, Director General for Enlargement at the European Commission, and stressed the resolve of Lithuania’s incoming EU Presidency to further aim to implement EU’s viable enlargement policy.
“The process of EU’s enlargement and its prospect for countries aiming to join EU constitute one of the most powerful incentives to engage in internal reforms, so each country’s progress in this area must be assessed on a case-by-case basis, while evaluation criteria should be applied fairly and equitably,” Linkevičius said.
He added that in order to bring accession negotiations to successful conclusion, Lithuania’s Presidency of one of the key EU institutions would dedicate great attention to close cooperation between institutions and would search for general consensus.
The meeting with Sannino also focused on the situation in the Western Balkans and the relations between Serbia and Kosovo, upon which depend not only the prospects for the EU membership of these countries, but also the stability of the entire region. The officials also discussed the EU accession negotiations with Iceland and prospects for negotiations with Turkey.
In Vilnius, the high-ranking official of the European Commission also met with representatives of the Office of the President and the Seimas (Parliament), and took part in a debate on the EU enlargement at the Seimas European Club.
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