News

On 4 October in Chisinau, the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Lithuania Linas Linkevičius will participate in the 5th annual meeting of the Eastern Partnership Civil Society Forum. With other high-ranking officials of the EU and Eastern Partnership countries, and representatives of civil society, the Lithuanian Foreign Minister will discuss the role of civil society in the implementation of the initiative that is important for both the EU and its eastern neighbours.

The meeting of the Eastern Partnership Civil Society Forum, which will be held in one of the participant countries for the first time, is an official side event of the Eastern Partnership Summit to be held in November in Vilnius. Lithuania’s Presidency of the EU Council supports this event politically and financially. The outcomes of the meeting will be presented at the Vilnius Summit.

The opening of the forum will be attended by Stefan Füle, European Commissioner for Enlargement and European Neighbourhood Policy, Natalia Gherman, Moldova’s Deputy Prime Minister, Minister of Foreign Affairs and European Integration, Maia Panjikidze, Foreign Minister of Georgia, and other high-ranking officials of the European Union, Member States, and Partnership countries.

During the visit, L.Linkevičius and the Moldovan President Nicolae Timofti, Prime Minister Iurie Leanca, Speaker of the Parliament Igor Corman and N.Gherman will also discuss preparations for the Vilnius Summit, Moldova’s progress towards democratic reform and the country’s major challenges of political association and economic integration with the European Union.

It is expected that the EU-Moldova Association Agreement will be initialled at the Vilnius Summit.