In Stockholm, Lithuania's Foreign Vice-Minister met with representatives of the local Lithuanian community and welcomed the activities of his fellow countrymen living in the Northern European country, as well as their close ties with the fatherland and ongoing initiatives. Bekešius presented important projects under the Global Lithuania programme, dedicated to the development of the activities of the Lithuanian diaspora and to the strengthening of their ties with Lithuania.
Lithuania's Foreign Vice-Minister also participated in the annual meeting of Lithuanian Honorary Consuls at the Embassy of Lithuania in Sweden. In the meeting, the Lithuanian Honorary Consuls presented their last year's activities and discussed plans for 2016, including the further development of cooperation between Lithuania and Sweden in the political, economic, cultural and other fields. Bekešius acquainted the Honorary Consuls with political guidelines and important issues related to Lithuania's domestic and foreign policy. He also highlighted the role of Lithuanian Honorary Consuls overseas and stressed that it was significant for the development and advancement of ties between the countries.
In the meeting with the Director-General for Asylum and Migration Policy of the Ministry of Justice of Sweden Henrikson, Lithuania's Foreign Vice-Minister discussed the situation after the influx of refugees into Europe, the experience of Lithuania and Sweden of taking in refugees, the integration of asylum seekers, and related challenges. Lithuania's Foreign Vice-Minister said that it was necessary to strengthen the protection of the external borders of the EU in order to reduce the flows of illegal immigration and to preserve the Schengen area, which guaranteed the fundamental right of freedom of movement of persons. Bekešius also noted that it was important to strengthen cooperation with third countries on return of irregular migrants to their countries of origin and to prevent the illegal transportation of persons.
