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Skybar, Reval Hotel Lietuva, Vilnius, 2 May 2006

Ladies and Gentlemen,

Let me express a very warm welcome to Vilnius.

I am particularly delighted that you all gathered in this historical city for the international conference “Common Vision for Common Neighborhood.”

This conference continues the initiative that was launched in 1997, when Lithuania and Poland co-hosted an international conference on good neighbourly relations as the underlying principle of regional co-operation. It also follows-up a series of meetings of the Community of Democratic Choice, initiated by Ukraine and Georgia.

Good neighbourly relations played their crucial role in advancing peacefully the zone of stability and co-operation to the east.

Now the time is ripe to refresh our ideas. With more than 20 countries represented at Vilnius Conference we expect to launch a strategic debate on the future of our common neighbourhood.

The need for such a debate is even more obvious after the dramatic transformation in Europe’s East, where democratic ideals have been embraced so fervently. The efforts of the Community of Democratic Choice remind me of the struggle which Lithuania and our region had to fight more than a decade ago.

Our strategic tasks today can be summarized as follows:

First, we need to make clear that the vision of Europe whole and free is equally shared by all of us. I reject the idea that only selected parts of Europe deserve democracy due to their historical or cultural traditions.

Second, it is already clear that democratic progress in Eastern Europe, if successful, will produce eligible candidates for EU and NATO membership. EU and NATO, together with aspirant countries, have to develop effective mechanisms of co-operation in order to repeat the success of former enlargements.

Third, regional co-operation remains of great significance for promoting European and transatlantic integration. However, development of various regional formats should not undermine our efforts to complete the vision of Europe whole and free. Such initiatives as the Community of Democratic Choice provide new opportunities to expand cooperation across Europe on informal basis.

Ladies and Gentlemen,

I want to thank you for coming to Vilnius and for your contribution to the success of Vilnius Conference, in which I wholeheartedly believe!