News

On 4 March in Vilnius, Lithuania’s Minister of Foreign Affairs Audronius Ažubalis and newly appointed Swedish Minister for EU Affairs Birgitta Ohlsson discussed the bilateral relations, the European Union’s Strategy for the Baltic Sea Region and the EU agenda.

Head of Lithuania’s diplomacy stressed that the Lithuanian-Swedish bilateral relations were steadily strengthening, especially in the area of economic cooperation.

“I am very satisfied that Sweden ranks first according to the flow of direct foreign investments in Lithuania,” Minister A.Ažubalis said.

The ministers discussed the implementation of the EU Strategy for the Baltic Sea Region that was adopted by the European Council in the end of 2009. They also talked about the possibilities for cooperation when carrying out joint projects, which are coordinated by Lithuania and Sweden, in the areas of transport and investment promotion, and agriculture.

Head of Lithuania’s diplomacy stressed the necessity for rapid implementation of the NordBalt project - the Lithuanian-Swedish power interconnection, which will link the electricity systems of Baltic and Nordic countries. The implementation of the project will help to strengthen region’s energy security and will ensure the sustainability of energy supply.

“The targeted year 2016 is too long time to wait. It is necessary to find ways to implement the project faster,” Minister A.Ažubalis said.

Swedish Minister for EU Affairs agreed with the idea raised by Minister A.Ažubalis to establish a wise men group of the Nordic and Baltic countries in the future. The group would discuss region’s most important challenges and would make suggestions for strengthening the Nordic-Baltic cooperation in specific areas, aiming to promote the region’s competitiveness.

The ministers exchanged opinions on the new EU 2020 Strategy, which is currently being prepared and which is designed to promote economic growth and employment in the EU. Issues of climate change, EU-Russia relations and the Eastern Partnership initiative were also discussed.

Ministers A.Ažubalis and B.Ohlsson spoke about the Law on the Protection of Minors against the Detrimental Effect of Public Information that came into force on 1 March in Lithuania. The Swedish Minister was informed about the application of this law and the amendments to the law that were adopted in the end of 2009.