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On 16 April Lithuanian Ambassador to Germany Evaldas Ignatavičius met with former Minister of Foreign Affairs of Germany Hans-Dietrich Genscher.

During the meeting the Ambassador presented a letter of congratulations and gifts on behalf of President of the Republic of Lithuania Valdas Adamkus to the politician, who has recently celebrated his 80th jubilee.

In the letter of congratulations Lithuanian President V.Adamkus thanked H.D.Genscher for his active and principled work, which helped to unite Europe and contributed to Lithuania’s freedom. H.D.Genscher was also presented with a book on Lithuania’s achievements since the day of the restoration of its independence till today “Lithuania: a Success Story”. The Ambassador thanked the former Minister of Foreign Affairs for paying constant attention to Lithuania, especially in 2006, when he patronized the events celebrating the 15th anniversary of restoration of diplomatic relations between Germany and the Baltic States.

H.D.Genscher inquired about Lithuania and its citizens and whether the membership in the EU has come up with their expectations. During the meeting the complicated international situation of 1990-1991, when Germany together with the Nordic countries was among the first countries to recognize restoration of Lithuania’s independence was recalled. Moreover, the difficult talks between H.D.Genscher and Mikhail Gorbachev after the January 1991 events were reminisced.

Former Head of German diplomacy emphasized that there were no alternatives to the European Union because it has successfully combined interests of large and small countries. Such political model, according to him, is extraordinary on a world scale and undoubtedly sets an example for other regions of the world in the future. 

H.D.Genscher expressed regret for current dominance of problems in the European issues rather than shared values that could unify Europe and such fundamental achievements as common currency and market. He also stressed the importance of common energy structure in the EU highlighting that no country should bring to bear pressure by means of energy.

The collocutors expressed hope that the cooperation between Lithuania and Germany shall continue to be actively developed. 2008 is announced a year of culture of Germany and the Baltic States to mark the 90th  anniversary of the independence of Germany and in 2009 Lithuania celebrates the thousandth anniversary since its first historical mention, which is also the millennium jubilee of Lithuanian-German relations.