News

On 19 September in Vilnius, the Lithuanian Vice-Minister of Foreign Affairs Vytautas Leškevičius and Morocco’s Minister Delegate for Foreign Affairs and Cooperation Youssef Amrani discussed Lithuania’s Presidency of the Council of the European Union, possibilities for closer cooperation between Morocco and the EU, other important issues.

The Foreign Vice-Minister acquainted the Moroccan Minister with priorities for the Lithuanian Presidency, progress and plans for European Neighbourhood Policy, and stressed the importance of cooperation with countries of the Southern neighbourhood.

V.Leškevičius positively assessed democratic reforms in Morocco and recent efforts to strengthen cooperation between Morocco and the EU, in particular as regards the agreement of an EU-Morocco Action Plan 2013-2017; the signing of an EU-Morocco mobility partnership and a successful launch of negotiations for a Deep and Comprehensive Free Trade Agreement.

The Lithuanian Foreign Vice-Minister also invited Moroccan representatives to participate in a Senior Officials’ Meeting of the Union for the Mediterranean and a meeting of national coordinators of the Anna Lindh Foundation to be held in Vilnius.

Y.Amrani welcomed the ambitious programme for the Lithuanian Presidency, affirmed the importance of closer cooperation between Morocco and the EU, and drew attention to the untapped potential of the EU-Morocco cooperation in the fight against terrorism and illegal migration.

On 20 September, the delegation led by Morocco’s Minister Delegate will meet with the Lithuanian Foreign Vice-Minister Neris Germanas. The meeting will discuss promotion of the Lithuania-Morocco political and economic dialogue, as well as opportunities to cooperate more closely in a multilateral context.

In Vilnius, Y.Amrani will also meet with Benediktas Juodka, Chair of the Seimas Committee on Foreign Affairs.