Gitanas Nausėda welcomed the President of the European Commission visiting Lithuania on such a special day, Europe Day. The Head of State emphasized that Lithuanians truly love Europe and are proud to be full members of the European family.
In the current geopolitical context, Europe’s role and leadership are more important than ever.
“Through our actions, we must defend European values—freedom, peace, democracy. Our ability to act decisively determines the kind of Europe we and our children will live in. The future of Europe is in the hands of us all”, said the Head of State.
According to President Gitanas Nausėda, Ukraine’s victory is a guarantee of Europe’s security and lasting peace.
“We must provide Ukraine with the necessary military assistance rapidly and efficiently, and we need to strengthen the EU’s defense industry to defeat the aggressor. We must not allow Russia’s aggression to continue to ramify in Europe. If we do not stop Putin in Ukraine, war will come to every European’s home. Let’s not let that happen,” the President said.
The Head of State stressed the need to continue the EU’s policy of sanctions against Russia and to further tighten them. According to President Gitanas Nausėda, the 14th package of sanctions should target the most painful areas of the Russian economy. The President welcomed the EU agreement reached yesterday on giving profits from frozen Russian assets to Ukraine. According to the Lithuanian leader, it is necessary to continue looking for ways to fully utilize Russia’s frozen assets for Ukraine’s needs.
The fight against disinformation and Russia’s attempts to rewrite history were also addressed. The Head of State emphasized the importance of paying particular attention to historical memory and to strengthening the resilience of our societies.
Gitanas Nausėda and the President of the European Commission also discussed EU enlargement issues, with the Head of State underlining the need to start EU membership negotiations with Ukraine and Moldova in June this year. According to President Gitanas Nausėda, this is an important political and supportive message to the societies of these countries, which are actively promoting their European future.
