News

During the World Lithuanian Youth Meeting a discussion “Lithuania’s foreign policy – are we implementing it well enough?” was organized in Vazgaikiemis, Prienai district, on July 13. At the discussion, Lithuanian Minister of Foreign Affairs Audronius Ažubalis stressed that Lithuania’s foreign policy must not only comply with wishes, but, first of all, be compatible with vital needs and possibilities.

“The country’s vital needs are related not only to broad geopolitical processes, but also to everyday concerns of the Lithuanian people that are not less serious and range from home heating costs to economic realities and the challenges of emigration. My goal is to not to allow diplomacy overlook it, to bring diplomacy “back down to earth” and focus on what is important to every individual who lives in Lithuania here and now,” the Minister said.

According to him, one of the key tasks for the Government that embraces this approach is to achieve a radical transformation in Lithuania’s energy sector.

“If not for the support of the U.S and EU and the participation of democratic neighbouring countries in our projects, Lithuania as a state energetically and, thus, politically, would remain dominated by Eastern monopolists. We are solving this problem and, already in two years, Lithuanians will be able to escape the financial burden that is inflicted upon households,” Ažubalis said.

He believes that more active economic diplomacy demonstrates that it could be “a great foreign policy tool to improve citizens’ quality of life”.

According to the Minister, the momentum that was gathered over recent years is reflected in the expanding projects of transit through Lithuania, opening of new markets, the fastest growing exports in history, tourism, increasing investments, and a threefold increase in the flows of people returning to Lithuania.

Ažubalis also noted that Lithuania’s economic interests had to be based on values as well. “This is a very pragmatic approach. As we can see from the Belarusian model, safe and long-term profit is guaranteed by business transparency, competitiveness and innovation, rather than by individual political decrees,” he said.

As an example of economic and social responsibility to follow the Minister identified the model of Scandinavian countries, and dubbed the region of five Nordic and three Baltic States, that is now revived at Lithuania’s initiative, as “a truly revived space with a geopolitical potential.”

“Nordic direction does not interfere with long-term relations with partners in Central and Eastern Europe. When intelligently used, it could only increase the weight of Lithuania’s Eastern policy and give us freedom to manoeuvre. After all latest indicators of economic cooperation with Poland were never beter, and we remain really pragmatic partners. Smart regional policy is particularly relevant especially because we see that despite a more active civil society in Russia, the country aims at a dangerous post-Soviet integration which would be based on power, rather than free will of the people,” Ažubalis said.

According to him, despite some apparently new features, traditional directions, such as the strengthening of transatlantic security and promotion of democracy in the East, remain engrained in Lithuania’s foreign policy.

“These are the permanent priorities that gave tangible results today. We have gained NATO contingency plans and air space policing. And we encourage many Eastern countries - Georgia, Moldova and Ukraine – to continue implementing all the necessary reforms. Lithuania’s upcoming EU Presidency next year intends to organize the Eastern Partnership Summit. This is the proof of Lithuania’s consistency when directing the attention of the West towards the East,” the Minister stressed.

The discussion was also attended by Chairman of the Committee on Foreign Affairs of the Seimas (Parliament) of Lithuania Emanuelis Zingeris, MP Juozas Olekas and political analyst Vladimiras Laučius.

The World Lithuanian Youth Meeting took place in Public Harmonization Park, Prienai district on July 12-15.This is the first World Lithuanian Youth Meting in independent Lithuania that attracted over 3 thousand participants from more than 30 countries of the world. The Lithuanian Ministry of Foreign Affairs is one of the sponsors of the event.