On 5 June, the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Lithuania Gabrielius Landsbergis met with representatives of the delegation of the Moldovan Ministry of Foreign Affairs and European Integration and other institutions, participating in the training programme ‘Lithuania’s EU integration: key takeaways’.
“Lithuania’s accumulated experience on the road to the EU is unique. Few countries have experienced such a difficult period of transformation as Lithuania and have embarked on important reforms along the path of European integration. At that time, the support of partner countries and neighbours was essential for Lithuania, just as it is significant for Moldova today. Lithuania has received it from Northern European countries,” said Landsbergis.
“I call on Moldova to use Lithuania’s many years of experience as a large library where both good and complex stories can be found. Next year will mark the 20th anniversary of Lithuania’s EU membership. Our civil service has evolved and trained hundreds of dedicated civil servants and diplomats who have worked with EU issues for many years. So go ahead and use Lithuania’s experience and support on political, diplomatic and administrative tracks,” Landsbergis added.
Moldovan representatives also met with the Vice-Minister of Foreign Affairs Jovita Neliupšiene. They discussed Lithuania’s path towards European integration and the importance of EU membership for Lithuania.
The Moldovan delegation is visiting Lithuania on 5-9 June in the implementation framework of the development cooperation project, aimed at strengthening the administrative and institutional capacity and governance of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and European Integration. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Moldova launched the project last year. Moldovan officials have already acquainted themselves with Lithuania’s experience in creating the Lithuanian diplomatic service, economic diplomacy model, strategic communication, and hybrid threat management.
During the visit, the delegation will also visit the Seimas (Parliament) of Lithuania and the Government and meet with the heads of the European Commission’s representation and the European Parliament Liaison Office in Lithuania. Moldovan representatives will have the opportunity to discuss Lithuania’s success story and lessons learned, the EU’s institutional set-up and decision-making, cooperation with member states, coordination of EU affairs in Lithuania, the role of institutions in raising public awareness of EU integration and other relevant issues.
