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 Ministers,
 Excellencies,
 Ladies and Gentlemen,
It is my great pleasure to welcome you all gathered here on this day of high significance to our nation – the Day of Restoration of the State of Lithuania. Allow me to use this occasion to thank you, Your Excellencies, for the support of your countries for our goals throughout these years as well as for your personal input into strengthening the co-operation of our countries and peoples.I am also happy to be able to welcome twenty new ambassadors who presented their credentials last year, among them their excellencies Mr. Ahmed Ibrahim, Ambassador of Lebanon, and Mr. Ashot Hovakimian, Ambassador of Armenia, who are the first ambassadors of their countries to Lithuania.This is a festive occasion, but it is also a working meeting, during which we intend to inform you about the present-day realities of our country and introduce our future objectives. Later in this session you will learn more about our recent macroeconomic developments, investment opportunities, and Lithuania’s preparation for the EU membership. But first of all I would like to talk about Lithuania’s foreign policy, about our current priorities and future goals. Our foreign policy is based on a shared conviction that it should serve consolidation of State security and independence, achievement of internal and external stability, creation of optimum conditions for economic and social development in the country, and establishing Lithuania as a respected partner in the region and the world. These goals are expressed in the four priorities of our foreign policy: EU membership, NATO membership, good relations with our neighbours, and active economic diplomacy. Let me present each of them in greater detail.Integration into the European UnionHaving passed the milestones of Helsinki and Nice, now we have an opportunity to catch the first train of enlargement in order not to be left on a stand-by for the arrival of another express train. We know well the speed of the process and we can plan our steps accordingly.The outcome of the Summit of Nice was welcomed in Lithuania. The decisions adopted in Nice will ensure a fair and just representation of Lithuania in the EU institutions. Furthermore, a clear political signal was sent from Nice, saying that the people of the first group of new EU members could participate in the elections to the European Parliament in 2004. This corresponds to our agenda of accession. To make it feasible, we have to conclude the accession negotiations in 2002, which is realistic. Our target date of accession is January the first, 2004.The Lithuanian political parties agree that accession to the EU is our top priority. The Lithuanian Parliament and Government are working hand-in-hand towards this goal. The spectrum of activities is broad but the progress made is evident: we are moving forward with the amendments to the Lithuanian Constitution; we are further strengthening our external borders while at the same time seeking to preserve good neighbourly relations; we are promoting information technologies; we are strengthening our administrative capacities. Our objective is to be able to make a substantial progress at any given moment, especially before important decisions are taken in the European Union.Accession negotiations with the EU have been dynamic and successful. The Programme of the Swedish Presidency gives clear priority to enlargement and we expect the European Council in Göteborg to clarify the perspectives of the conclusion of accession negotiations. Information about negotiations will be provided to you by Mr. P.Austrevicius, our chief negotiator. Even though we have not yet joined the EU, Lithuania is becoming an equal and constructive partner of the Union, actively co-operating in such fields as the formation of the EU Common Foreign and Security Policy (CFCP) and Common European Security and Defence Policy (CESDP). At the November 2000 Capabilities Conference Lithuania offered its concrete contribution to the EU Rapid Reaction Forces to be developed by 2003. We are also planning to contribute to the EU Civil Crisis Management capacity. At the same time we hope that the strengthening of European Defence System will not be to the detriment of transatlantic links. Integration into NATOLithuania’s integration into NATO remains another top priority of the foreign policy for our country. We consider membership in EU and NATO to be of equal importance. Membership in one of these organisations can not and should not be replaced by the membership in the other organisation. Though the genuine desire of Lithuania to join NATO is not yet fulfilled, Lithuania was more than once mentioned as one of the strongest candidates for the next round of NATO enlargement. As a recognition of our efforts, Senator Jesse Helms, the Chairman of U.S. Senate Committee on Foreign Relations, in his recent speech said that he would work with the Bush Administration “to ensure that the Baltic States are invited to join their neighbours Poland, Hungary and Czech Republic as members of the NATO alliance…”. We will put our practical and political efforts into making these words come true. We expect NATO to continue its enlargement process in 2002 by inviting Lithuania and other candidate countries, each being considered on individual basis, to join the Alliance. We do believe that your countries will further support our aspirations to become a NATO member in 2002.Lithuania has confirmed its status as a reliable partner. We have allocated 1.95% of GDP for defense spending this year. We will seek to increase defence spending to 2% of GDP in 2002.The capacity and professionalism of Lithuanian officers was recognised in numerous joint missions with NATO in Bosnia and Kosovo. These are the perfect examples of our country’s modest contribution to the European stability.We are now preparing for the next NATO Parliamentary Assembly Session to be held in Vilnius next May. We hope that this event will be an important step on Lithuania’s way towards membership in the Alliance. Good neighbourly relationsOur country’s integration into the EU and NATO should not be considered as alternative to good neighbourly relations, which is the third priority of our foreign policy. On the contrary, Lithuania’s Euro-Atlantic integration contributes to the strengthening and deepening of bilateral and regional co-operation. We will soon celebrate the ten-year anniversary of the reestablishment of diplomatic relations with Poland. Over that time our relations with Poland have developed into what is known as strategic partnership. We will actively contribute to further co-operation of the Baltic and Nordic States, which was transformed from “five plus three” format to “Nordic-Baltic Eight” format. This is a new stage, an expression of newly built trust. We will seek to further strengthen traditional support of Northern European countries for our EU and NATO aspirations.The Government of the Republic of Lithuania will continue to pursue the policy of good neighbourly relations towards the Russian Federation based on positive agenda. In our opinion economic and cultural relations and open dialogue between our societies is the best foundation for mutual understanding and trust. We think that negative attitude of Russia towards NATO enlargement can be changed by active co-operation in various areas. The enlargement will help to strengthen European security and stability, which will contribute to open and constructive relations with Russia. Lithuania will remain active in engaging Kaliningrad Region of the Russian Federation in regional co-operation while at the same time employing EU and US initiatives, respectively the “Northern dimension” initiative and Northern Europe initiative.Growing regional co-operation between Lithuania and the Kaliningrad Region, and implementation of common projects could become a model for future relations between Russia and the EU. We are determined to continue our pragmatic relations with Byelorussia while at the same time seeking to strongly encourage democratic tendencies in the neighbouring country. Economic diplomacyWe have come a long way since independence proving that Lithuania is a stable and reliable actor on the political stage. However, the current situation dictates the necessity of having a more active position in implementing our foreign economic policy. Therefore, we will employ a more vibrant economic diplomacy by competing for new markets and attracting foreign investment to the Lithuanian economy, especially to the sectors of energy, IT, banking, transport industries, and tourism. We will further expand our trade with the EU, promote our exports to traditional markets in neighbouring countries, and at the same time widen our search for markets in the new directions - Asian, Arab, African, and Latin American countries.Lithuania’s membership in the WTO will ensure even more favourable trade relations for the country. We see further integration into international economic structures as the main stimulus for the growth of our national economy.ConclusionWe are aware that our foreign policy objectives are ambitious. But we are treating new challenges as opportunities. One of such opportunities is our upcoming chairmanship of the Committee of Ministers of the Council of Europe. It is a big honour and responsibility for Lithuania to shape the agenda and priorities of this organisation. Lithuanian chairmanship priorities will be presented to you later in the year, and I am open to your suggestions for the agenda of the Council of Europe during the Lithuanian chairmanship. We do hope that with your support and co-operation our chairmanship will contribute to the promotion of the ideals of democracy, individual liberty and human rights - the principles upon which the Council of Europe is founded. Thank you.