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Marine, transport, transit business as one of the strongest factors in economy, is inseparable from the state international relations and foreign policy. Lithuania as a member of the European Union tries at all costs to use favorable political circumstances and actively joins the creation of goods’ movement map. The project New Silk Road (JURA MOPE SEA, issue No. 5, 2005), shuttle trains Viking and Mercury, sea motorways unite Lithuania with all countries of the world. We are talking about Lithuanian international cooperation projects and plans with the Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Lithuania ANTANAS VALIONIS.

- Good economic relations with foreign countries are one of the main priorities of Lithuanian foreign policy. Developing relations with concrete states we always try to consider economic interests of Lithuania and safeguard them properly.

Lately, economic relations between Lithuania and Kazakhstan have been getting more and more active. On the one hand, Lithuanian entrepreneurs discover the market of this country in Central Asia. On the other hand, the Kazakhs, too, are interested to increase cargo transportation to the markets of Western Europe, and we can offer them the opportunities provided by Klaipeda port and container train Mercury.

The interest of KazMunaiGaz for Mazeikiu Nafta and the amount of the possible investment show how significant for them the economic relations with our country are.

It is important for Lithuania that the projects of Kazakhstan in our country would be long-lasting. It would secure not only strong relations between Lithuania and Kazakhstan, but also would positively influence the cooperation of both countries with Russia in transit sector.

- In May, last year after long negotiations, the cooperation project 2K between Lithuania and Russia was finally signed. When project 2K faced difficulties, Lithuanian entrepreneurs lost hope to return Russian cargo. At that time there were opinions, that this project would revive the transit of third countries via Russia to Klaipeda port.

How will the document, signed in Trakai, influence further cooperation between Lithuania and Russia and the transit with third countries?

- Agreement on the 2K project is one of many steps, by which Lithuania tries to increase the transit of Russian goods via Lithuania. The agreement signed in Trakai allows to coordinate common actions in attracting cargo flow to Klaipeda port securing the handling of Russian and Central Asian countries’ transit cargo.

This issue is constantly discussed at the meetings of Lithuanian and Russian officials. The intergovernmental commission of both countries, headed by the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Lithuania and the Minister of Transport of Russia Igor Levitin, gathered in November, also was interested how the signed agreement is being implemented.

By the information of Lithuanian businessmen, during the last several months Russian cargo started returning to Klaipeda port, the cargo from Kazakhstan has moved. The truth is, that the amount of it is not as big as to make this agreement being considered very positive; but that shows positive changes and they should be induced more considering the forthcoming Russia’s admission to the World Trade Organization (WTO).

I would like to remind that Russia, having joined WTO, will have to equalize railway tariffs and apply equal prices both inside the country and for international transportation. Therefore, the ways to achieve the solutions profitable to Lithuania should be found already now. The mere diplomatic efforts are not enough; it is necessary to combine the interests of cargo owners, railways, and ports, too.

- Almost two years have passed since we became a country of the European Union. New possibilities, contacting with both European and CIS countries, were opened to our country.

How the priorities in Lithuanian foreign policy have changed, what aims are planned to be pursued in future? What is the role of Lithuania as a transit country for the goods’ movement in the East-West and West-East direction?

After becoming a full member of the Euro-Atlantic family, Lithuania undertook another task – to become the center of regional cooperation, international initiatives. It is an ambitious but achievable objective. Endeavoring to implement it, we have to strengthen relations with neighboring countries, to keep a keen eye on the changes and sensitively react to them, share the successful experience of our country.

The state foreign policy and its role on both regional and world-scale level are inseparable from the country’s economic growth and achievements. Thanks to its geographical location Lithuania is one of transit countries between Western Europe and CIS countries and a perspective transport corridor in the North-South direction.

The status of the dynamic transit country is reflected in the statistics, too: cargo carriage by motor transport among other countries has been growing constantly since 2000 (in 2003 – 1306 thousand tonnes, in 2004 – 1542 thousand tonnes). Last year 49, 3 million tonnes of cargo were transported by railways. Comparing to 2004, the degree of transportation has grown by 8 per cent (45, 5 million tonnes were carried). It was caused by the increasing volumes of transit and local cargo transportation. So, we have a strong economic potential, and that we have to use properly.

Our country is crossed by two European transport corridors: I corridor in North – South direction Tallinn – Riga – Kaunas – Warsaw and its siding I A Siauliai – Kaliningrad – Gdansk; the sidings IX B Kiev – Minsk – Vilnius – Kaunas – Klaipeda and IX D Kaunas – Kaliningrad of IX corridor in the East – West direction. The great attention should be paid to the development and modernization of the latter transport corridor trying to maintain and increase the amount of cargo transported from CIS countries to Western Europe and other regions and vice versa.

Klaipeda port unites sea and motorways from the East and West. We are delighted, that last year Klaipeda port reached a record turnover: cargo flow in Klaipeda port in 2005, in comparison with other ports of the three Baltic States, has grown the most – up to 21, 768 tonnes, i.e. 7,5 per cent more than in 2004.

The projects of container train Viking running between Odessa and Klaipeda connecting the Baltic and Black Sea regions, and Mercury running by the route Klaipeda/Kaliningrad – Minsk – Moscow allowing a cargo owner and a forwarder to choose the most suitable model of logistic chain, have justified themselves.

Cargo transportation by containers, increasing possibilities of Lithuanian consumers, the potential of Klaipeda port to serve several markets simultaneously (Russia, Belarus, the Ukraine, Kazakhstan, etc.) are the factors that directly determined cargo handling growth in the port.

- Thank you for your answers.

Interviewed by Milda Manomaityte