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“Successful NATO ISAF (International Security Assistance Force) cargo transit via Lithuania carried out thanks to intense business and political relations between Lithuania and the USA, will have to become a stimulus in developing new forms of cooperation with the USA in the sphere of logistics infrastructure in the future”, noted Foreign Minister Linas Linkevičius at the meeting with General Paul J. Selva, Commander of US Transportation Command of the Department of Defence (USTRANSCOM) on his visit to Lithuania on August 20. 

General Paul J. Selva praised a well-developed transport and logistics infrastructure of Lithuania, in particular a modern Klaipėda Sea Port and the railroads, and stated that capacities and experience of Lithuania’s transport sector would be taken into consideration in the future when drawing up the US military logistics plans. The Minister urged the TRANSCOM Commander to make a more effective use of Lithuania’s transport and logistics infrastructure.

The General on a visit to Vilnius today also met with President Dalia Grybauskaitė, Prime Minister Algirdas Butkevičius, Commander-in-Chief of the Lithuanian Armed Forces Major General Jonas Vytautas Žukas, Minister of Transport and Communications of Lithuania Rimantas Sinkevičius.

This is already a third visit of the high-ranking US officer to Lithuania organised by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Ministry of National Defence, the Ministry of Transport and Communications and the US Embassy in Lithuania devoted to presenting the achievements of Lithuania’s transport infrastructure to the US partners and to further developing cooperation relationships. In June 2012, TRANSCOM Commander General William Fraser came to Lithuania on a visit, and in November 2010, TRANSCOM Commander General Duncan McNabb visited our country.

Lithuania started carrying NATO ISAF cargoes on route called Šiaurinis kelias (NDN ‒ Northern Line of Communication) running through Central Asia, Russia, Belarus to Afghanistan via Klaipėda Sea Port in 2008. This cooperation established Lithuania in the international transport corridor linking Europe with Asia and creates the possibility to develop the bilateral plans in the fields of transport and logistics in the future.