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On 5 March the Undersecretary of Lithuanian Ministry of Foreign Affairs Žygimantas Pavilionis participated in the meeting of Nordic-Baltic Ministers of Foreign Affairs in Brussels and discussed the energy policy issues.

“We have to continue harmonizing our actions concerning the development of the energy infrastructure in the Baltic Sea. It is of vital importance to carry out an independent assessment of environmental impact of the Nordic gas pipeline,” affirmed Undersecretary of  the Ministry of Foreign Affairs Ž.Pavilionis.

Ž.Pavilionis along with the Nordic and Baltic heads of diplomacy also discussed the possibilities of closer cooperation with the Central Asia countries implementing the European Union’s energy policy.

The Undersecretary of Lithuanian Foreign Ministry stressed the importance of the EU’s solidarity talking about the external EU energy policy and expressed concern regarding the fact that Russia had cut its oil supply to Lithuania via the oil pipeline “Druzhba”.

“To tackle the problem of Russia cutting the oil supply, the actions of the European Union have to be coordinated. The oil supply cut-off makes us refer to the natural oil transportation by the Baltic Sea. This could condition even greater pollution of the sea, which has already been officially declared one of the most polluted seas of the world,” said Ž. Pavilionis.

During the meeting of the European Union’s General Affairs and External Relations Council, the Undersecretary of Foreign Ministry Ž.Pavilionis also emphasized the energy issues. He highlighted that Russia has to make steps forward to confirm that it is a reliable supplier of energy resources to the EU.

To cooperate successfully with its external suppliers, the EU has to use all the means to secure a reliable supply of energy resources. According to Ž.Pavilionis, this is especially important during the negotiations with Russia regarding the new partnership and cooperation agreement.

The decision on the EU Energy Action Plan is to be taken by the EU heads on March 8-9, during the European Council meeting.

During the session on external relations the EU ministers discussed the EU relations with Uzbekistan, Iran, situation in Sudan, the Middle East, as well as Bosnia and Herzegovina. The ministers confirmed their decision to allow the European Neighbourhood Policy partner states to participate in the EU agencies and programmes. This would provide possibility for further enhancement of the EU cooperation with its neighbour states.