News

On 15 January in Trakai, Lithuania’s Minister of Foreign Affairs Vygaudas Ušackas, Moldova’s head of diplomacy Iurie Leanca and Romania’s foreign minister Teodor Baconschi discussed the support for Moldova’s aims to cooperate closer with the European Union and for internal reforms in the country. Minister V.Ušackas welcomed the unanimous decision of the Senate of Romania to ratify the agreement with Moldova, which facilitates visa requirements for residents living at the border with Romania.

The agreement that was signed last November by Prime Ministers of Romania and Moldova Emil Boc and Vlad Filat provides a possibility for Moldova’s citizens, who live at the border with Romania, to enter the neighbouring country without a visa.

Minister V.Ušackas stressed the significance of negations that were opened on 12 January 2010 regarding the new EU-Moldova agreement, which would replace the current Partnership and Cooperation Agreement. The Minister emphasized that it was a new and strategically important step towards the strengthening of relations between the EU and Moldova.

Lithuania’s Minister of Foreign Affairs assured that Lithuania would continue to actively support the determination of the new Moldova’s Government to develop and to deepen the European integration process by providing specific practical expert assistance for Moldova’s institutions, also by helping to benefit from the possibilities that are granted within the Eastern Partnership programme.

Minister I.Leanca thanked Lithuania for its support to Moldova and asked to continue this cooperation in consolidating the support for Moldova’s reforms and in deepening the country’s relations with the EU.

Moldova’s Minister of Foreign Affairs and European Integration stressed that currently his country needed the support of Lithuania’s European integration experts and an active assistance to attract Western financial support for the implementation of reforms within the country.

During the meeting, foreign ministers of Lithuania and Moldova also discussed the possibilities for the settlement of the unresolved conflict in Transnistria and emphasized the need to strengthen the dialogue between Chisinau and Tiraspol through the measures of mutual confidence building.

As a member of troika at the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) in 2010 and as a head of organization in 2011, Lithuania intends to dedicate a lot of attention to the settlement of this conflict.

At the meeting, the Ministers spoke about the visit of Lithuania’s Prime Minister Andrius Kubilius and a business mission to Moldova that are scheduled on 26-27 January.

During the conversation, Lithuanian and Romanian foreign ministers stated that in the past 5 months since Moldova’s last parliamentary election, relations between Romania and Moldova have obviously improved.

Minister V.Ušackas stressed that he trusted in the effectiveness of informal discussions led by political directors of MFA’s on the issues of Moldova that were recently initiated by Lithuania, Romania, Hungary and Poland.

“We expect that the formation of this group will provide a possibility to operatively and informally exchange ideas on the issues of the EU’s relations with Moldova,” Minister V.Ušackas said during the meeting with Minister T.Baconschi.

Romanian Minister for Foreign Affairs took interest in the process of Lithuania’s preparation to chair the OSCE and the priorities of its Chairmanship.

Romania’s representatives were invited to take part in the conference on Afghanistan’s Ghor province development that is being organized by Lithuania and the administration of Ghor this year.

On 14-15 January, foreign ministers of Lithuania, Moldova and Romania attended the informal Snow Meeting of European and North American experts on international and security policy - politicians, political scientists, diplomats and analysts - in Trakai. The participants of the meeting discussed the issues of relations between East and West, key strategic challenges that the Euro-Atlantic community will have to face in 2010. The first meeting between I.Leanca and T.Baconschi took place in Trakai.