News

On 12th-13th of March, in Petersberg, Undersecretary of Lithuanian Ministry of Foreign Affairs Laimonas Talat-Kelpša took part in the informal meeting of  the EU Development Ministers, where they discussed the principles of division of labour among the donor countries, conclusion of Economic Partnership Agreements with states of Africa, the Caribbean and the Pacific Region, and the correlation between the development cooperation and Energy Policy.

The Undersecretary of the Ministry affirmed that Lithuanian position is that the division of labour among the donor countries should not be based on formal criteria only. Which EU state should provide support to which states and in which sectors is not just a technical, but also a political issue. Therefore, the division of functions should be discussed and reviewed in advance.

According to L.Talat-Kelpša, Lithuania welcomes the joint initiative of German EU Presidency, and the European Commission to develop the EU-African energy partnership. African energy resources are currently available only to a few EU Member States. Therefore, it is necessary to develop internal links within the European Union.

During the discussion of the United Nations reform the Undersecretary of the Ministry L.Talat-Kelpša invited to take advantage of the term of Lithuania’s presidency of the UN Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) and provide the body with a more important role in coordinating the UN Development Cooperation Policy.

During the meeting Deputy Secretary-General of the United Nations Dr. Asha-Rose Migiro, who has recently taken office, presented reform principles to the EU Development Ministers. The UN reform includes new challenges for the Economic and Social Council.  One of the challenges is an active cooperation with the Peacebuilding Commission to ensure a long-term sustainable development in post-conflict countries.

The Development Cooperation is the European Union’s external policy area, which focuses on providing support to developing countries reforming their country administration, consolidating democracy and protecting human rights, alleviating poverty, as well as promoting economic and social development.

In the Development Cooperation Policy Lithuania pays most attention to the countries of Eastern Europe and South Caucasus and recently to the Ghor Province in Afghanistan.

The informal meeting of the EU Development Ministers is organized on the initiative of German EU Presidency.