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On 27 October in Brussels, Lithuanian Minister of Foreign Affairs Antanas Valionis participated in the Intergovernmental Conference’s session, where negotiations on the draft EU (European Union) Constitutional Treaty continued. During the session, special attention was devoted to discussions on the presidency in the Council of Ministers. Minister Valionis pointed out that in the Lithuanian Government’s opinion, the rules of presidency in the Council of Ministers is one of the key issues. “I believe that the decision proposed by Italy will ensure equal possibilities for all the states to preside over the Council – the institution, where the interests of member states are represented and defended,” the Minister said. “The most important principle followed by Lithuania in the negotiations on the order of presidency is to guarantee equality of member states,” the Chief of the Lithuanian Diplomacy noted. According to Minister Valionis, Lithuania backs the Italian proposal, as it has supported the idea of team presidency from the very beginning. “The most important thing is that every state would preside over the General Affairs Council and its Committee of Permanent Representatives for six months in turn,” Antanas Valionis said. He also underlined that the draft project should be supplemented with provisions on equal rotation of countries inside the presiding team. “We think that the team should consist of three states, which would hold the presidency for one and a half year,” the Minister proposed. “The issue of presidency is of great importance, as in three or four years Lithuania will preside over the Council of Ministers as well,” the Chief of the Lithuanian Diplomacy said. The ministers of foreign affairs also discussed proposals presented to the Intergovernmental Conference by the EU and candidate countries’ ministers of finance.