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On January 23, the Lithuanian Foreign Minister Antanas Valionis addressed the Seimas in a discussion on Lithuanian integration into the EU. Valionis praised the will expressed by the Lithuanian political forces that Lithuania would become a EU member with the first wave of the new members. The Lithuanian Foreign Minister stressed the importance of the agreement between the majority and the opposition on the issue of integration and the joint efforts of the governmental institutions. Minister Valionis also reminded that the Lithuanian Government had accomplished the process of confirming its position papers. Thus, it is even more important to agree among the political parties to speed up Lithuania’s efforts of integration and practical support for it. According to the Minister, this shows responsibility and maturity of our politics. The Lithuanian Foreign Minister noted that the Eastern border of Lithuania would become the Eastern border of EU and NATO in the nearest perspective. It is necessary to assure that Lithuania’s borders are open to business and cultural exchange and closed to crime and illegal migration. The Kaliningrad region, the Minister said, is a specific issue of the Baltic Sea region, and the European Union, Russia, Poland and Lithuania will have to find solutions to certain problems there. Minister Valionis also mentioned of the absence of the law in Lithuania on driver liability insurance, the prohibition on selling agricultural land to foreigners in the Lithuanian Constitution and amendments, still not passed, to the laws on bankruptcy and reorganisation of companies. The Lithuanian Foreign Minister told the parliamentarians that Lithuania has an authoritative senior negotiator and his team, adding that Lithuania’s well-wishing neighbour Sweden holds the EU Presidency and it has a great interest in our membership and our success in negotiations. The Lithuanian Foreign Minister underscored that the plans of this Seimas and this Government of Lithuania comply with real scenarios of the EU enlargement. Valionis said the negotiations with the EU need to be concluded by the end of the next year and the membership agreement has to be signed for Lithuania to ratify it by the end of 2003.