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Answers to the questions put by the magazine Made in Lithuania to the minister of foreign affairs of the republic of Lithuania Petras Vaitiekūnas – Last year, in 2006, due to the energy policy, relations between the European Union and Russia obviously worsened. Russia often takes the position of a blackmailer and a provocateur on this issue. What is your opinion about this issue and does Lithuania have any grounds to fear threats posed by Russia?

Russia is a very important partner to the European Union in the sphere of energy. Gas and oil countries of the European Union import mainly from Russia. However, I would not agree to an often-repeated statement that the European Union is unilaterally dependent on Russia in the sphere of energy. In my opinion, this dependence is mutual because the EU countries are main markets for Russia’s gas and oil, and the income earned from that constitutes the largest part of its budgetary revenue. Hence, interdependence is obvious.

Lithuania speaks for a further expansion of relations between the European Union and Russia in the sphere of energy. However, we firmly hold the opinion that these relations should be based on the principles of competitiveness, non-discrimination, reciprocity and transparency. In our opinion, all these principles are reflected in the Energy Charter Treaty and its Transit Protocol. Therefore, Lithuania, together with the EU partners, will go on making efforts in trying to convince Russia to ratify the said document as soon as possible.

We think that applying equal rules of the game in the sphere of energy would be useful to both parties and would give more clarity and transparency to co-operation between the European Union and Russia.

Mažeikių nafta has not received oil through the oil pipeline from Russia since July 2006. We were informed that this was due to a technical breakdown in the oil pipeline. I want to believe this and I hope that we shall receive a positive answer to the constructive proposal made by Lithuania and the European Commission to contribute to solving this problem. Both Lithuania and the European Union are interested in seeing Russia as a reliable and predictable energy partner.

Unlike the oil case, Lithuania is totally dependent on supply of gas from Russia. In January 2006 Lithuania also felt the consequences of the dispute between Russia and Ukraine over the gas price. We eagerly watched the negotiations between Russia and Belarus, which went on right to the end of 2006 on the gas price, and we were getting ready for the worst scenario in case the negotiations failed. We are glad that both countries managed to reach an agreement and gas supply was not disrupted and was not restricted.

Despite all that, the possibility cannot be rejected that a similar situation would not repeat itself in the future. Taking this fact into consideration it is necessary to start looking for alternatives to supplying ourselves with gas as soon as possible. Lithuania, together with its neighbours, considers several variants, which would help strengthen energy safety of the country with respect to gas supply: 1) connecting oil pipelines to the western countries (this alternative would become attractive from the point of view of diversification of gas supply provided that the project of connecting oil pipelines of Poland and Norway is implemented); 2) building a terminal of liquid gas in one of the countries of the region; 3) expansion of the existing gas repositories in Latvia or building new gas repositories in the region.

– How could you comment on German-Russian, French-Russian dividing energy policies with respect to the European Union? (For example, Finland has turned down the offer to solve energy issues with Russia through bilateral relations).

Lithuania believes that energy issues at the European level can be addressed most efficiently by developing the external EU energy policy. One of the main principles of this policy should be speaking the same language with the main suppliers of energy resources. This can be achieved only having created the single energy market of the European Union and having integrated it into regional and isolated energy systems, which exist in the Baltic States at the present time.

Having failed to do that, it would be unrealistic to speak about the creation of an effectively operating single energy market of the European Union. In principle, a market cannot function if bridges do not connect individual islands within it. Therefore Lithuania’s projects of electricity bridges with Poland and Sweden have a strategic importance and their implementation should be started as soon as possible.

We have to seek jointly that our projects should find themselves in to the plan of the EU priority joints and infrastructure, which would allow integrating the region in the European Union. In the immediate future a strategic document of the review of the EU strategic energy should be prepared in which main guidelines for a further EU energy policy should be drawn up.

Though building of electricity transmission lines helps integrate such energy islands as the Baltic States in the European Union, this is not enough. One must think about diversification of energy resources in a broad sense, that is, diversification of oil and gas supply. Countries of the Caspian Sea basin and Middle Asia, which are rich in oil and gas, could be regarded as the most realistic alternative, therefore we are for strengthening relations with these countries, especially in the sphere of energy.

We suppose that the principle of solidarity within the context of the common EU energy policy is of paramount importance. We have to seek with combined efforts to achieve that in formulating the common energy strategy of Europe not only commercial interests should prevail but there should also be political understanding. Not all projects for infrastructure are commercially attractive, however, often their significance from the point of view of energy safety and the creation of the single EU energy market has a strategic importance.

In formulating the external and internal EU energy policy we have to create the mechanism, which would create conditions for a rapid and co-ordinated EU response to the crisis situations of energy supply. Lithuania welcomes the solution concerning the establishment of a network of correspondents of the EU energy safety. We believe that such a network could not only co-ordinate the EU energy policy but also operate as a system warning us about possible crisis situations.

In summing up it should be said that it is only by acting jointly that we shall be stronger and our opinion shall be taken into consideration more seriously. When speaking in twenty-seven different languages the probability that we shall be heard is much smaller than having formulated a single consolidated position.

– Act as a prophet. Your forecast for this year (2007) and the future – what topical issues will come to the foreground in the relations between the European Union and Russia, which will determine the development of political-economic relations of both parties.

To give an answer to this question one must not actually be a prophet. It is absolutely clear that the main issue in the relations between the European Union and Russia in 2007 will be preparation for the negotiations on the new comprehensive, or the so-called “framework” agreement on co-operation between the European Union and Russia. This agreement is necessary if we want to give a new legal basis to the EU-Russian co-operation because the Partnership and Co-operation Agreement between the European Union and Russia currently in effect was signed as far back as 1994. We know very well how many changes have taken place since that time.

We hope that after Germany takes presidency over the European Union, the issue of import of Polish meat to Russia, which interferes with completing the preparation for the negotiations and moving to the negotiations themselves, will be resolved as soon as possible. On the other hand, should any problems arise, they have to be solved rather than conserved. We understand Poland’s position and suppose that these issues must be solved at the European Union level.

The issues of co-operation in the sphere of energy will remain of significance in the future too. The European Union is interested in buying Russia’s energy resources, investing in their extraction. Unfortunately, Russia, as we see, further engages in politicising this branch of business and the European Union cannot ignore this fact.

The general situation in the European Union-Russian relations will mainly depend on the road Russia is going to take in the future. An important time period in the life of that state is approaching – parliamentary and presidential elections at the end of 2007 and at the beginning of 2008. Their course and results will become an important new test, which will show how strong Russia’s determination to go along the road of democracy is. And this will have an effect on the contents and spirit of co-operation between the European Union and Russia.