News

On 11 May an international youth forum ‘Searching for Identity: The Dialog between the European Union and its Eastern Neighbours’ is held in Vilnius. It is attended by representatives from youth organisations from Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Estonia, Georgia, Latvia, Poland, Lithuania, Moldova, Russia, Sweden, Ukraine and Germany, currently presiding over the EU.

The youth forum is dedicated to the issues of regional identity. Issues of difference between the EU and the European identity and the double - the EU and Russian - identity attraction are discussed. Moreover, the youth understanding of regional identity is also spoken about, as well as the youth’s influence establishing the dialogue between the EU and its Eastern neighbours.

The EU Department Director of Lithuanian Ministry of Foreign Affairs Vidmantas Purlys indicated  welcoming the participants of the forum that direct dialog of  civic society, especially of youth representatives, was one of the most effective ways for countries and societies to become closer  on the basis of common values. Lithuania pays a lot of attention to the European Neighbourhood Policy, which is being implemented by the EU and successfully encourages the EU dialog with its European neighbours.

Time and again intellectuals from the EU and Eastern Europe and representatives of active academic youth from various European countries come to Vilnius to discuss cooperation issues.

The forum is held by the students’ organization ‘RePublica’ of Vilnius University International Relations and Political Science Institute together with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.