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At the European Union‘s Foreign Affairs Council on 23 May in Brussels, during the discussions about the situation in the states of the South Caucasus and the course of negotiations on association agreements with Georgia, Armenia and Azerbaijan, Minister of Foreign Affairs of Lithuania Audronius Ažubalis spoke up for a consistent strengthening of the EU‘s relations with these countries.

“It is necessary to include our South Caucasian neighbours into the activities of the EU’s Eastern Neighbourhood Initiative, to start negotiations with Armenia and Azerbaijan regarding the visa regime facilitation  and readmission agreements”, Minister A.Ažubalis said.

Head of Lithuania‘s diplomacy noted that the EU and Georgia had to make efforts in order to be able to start by the end of 2011 the negotiations regarding the conclusion of a deep and comprehensive free trade agreement.

In the words of Minister A.Ažubalis, it should also be taken into account that Georgia is implementing the visa facilitation and readmission agreements which came into force on1 March. Based on this, a dialogue should be started with Georgia thus defining the conditions for a visa free regime as a long-term objective, the Minister said.

Minister A.Ažubalis informed the foreign ministers of other EU member states about the results of his visits to the states of the South Caucasus in the capacity of the Chairman-in-Office of the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe.

In the context of the forthcoming EU-Russia Summit, the EU foreign ministers expressed their concern regarding the strengthening of Russian military forces in Abkhazia and South Ossetia.

The Foreign Affairs Council also discussed the situation in the EU’s Southern Neighbourhood Region and the Middle East countries, the Council adopted conclusions on Bahrain, Libya, Syria, and Yemen. The initiative to open a technical EU office in the Libyan city of Benghazi, the EU’s assistance to Libya in the long-term and short-term, action coordination with the United Nations special representative for Lybia were discussed during the meeting in Brussels.

EU foreign ministers and the High Representative of the EU for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Catherine Ashton discussed the activities of the European External Action Service that started functioning on 1 January 2011.

“The representations of the EU and its member states have to cooperate more closely in the capitals of third countries, to exchange information and analysis. Better coordination of the common EU’s foreign policy actions would show the EU’s unity to the world”, Minister A.Ažubalis said.

According to him, a European External Action Service that is strong and closely cooperates with the diplomatic services of the member states would be particularly beneficial to Lithuania as it has limited capacity to secure diplomatic representation in the world.