News

On 8 June during the 6th Baltic Sea States Summit in Reykjavik Acting Minister of Foreign Affairs of Lithuania Antanas Valionis noticed that Lithuania appreciates Nordic neighbors’ assistance on the way to democracy and today is ready to take responsibility and help Eastern neighbors to build civil society and develop democracy.

“I am convinced that the Council of the Baltic Sea States is and will be a forum where the decisions important for all countries of the Baltic Sea region are taken,” Minister Valionis said and stressed that active cooperation of the Council with Ukraine and Belarus would have positive effect  on consolidation of democratic values in the region.

In discussion of the marine environment and maritime safety of the Baltic Sea Lithuanian Foreign Minister drew attention to the fact that the Baltic Sea is one of the most polluted seas in the world. 

“Our joint commitment to harmonise environmental legislation is extremely important in order to protect the Baltic Sea from oil and other hazardous pollutants,” Minister Valionis stated.

The Minister named the development of wastewater treatment equipment on the Russian part of the Nemunas River as one of the urgent issues that requires an immediate solution.

He also drew attention to danger posed by the oil extraction at the deposit D-6 to ecologic environment of the Baltic Sea.

“The Baltic Sea pipeline to be built by Russian and German companies is another project of the kind posing a major threat to the Baltic Sea, nature, and people of the Baltic Sea region,” Foreign Minister said and invited to discuss institutional supervision of this project.

According to the Minister Valionis the gas pipeline will inevitably pass the chemical weapons burial sites. For this reason the construction of the gas pipeline necessarily deserves the attention of all countries and multilateral international organisations.

The Minister stressed that the Baltic Sea States increasingly understand the importance of the common energy strategy and the Council of the Baltic Sea States is a suitable forum for discussion of problems and working towards common solutions.

“Now we should consolidate efforts of the Council of the Baltic Sea States to sustain the dynamics of the region’s economy, and ensure the most favourable business environment by more actively involving different regions of the Russian Federation, especially the Kaliningrad area,” the Head of Lithuanian Diplomacy sated.