On 8 January, the Vice-Minister of Foreign Affairs of Lithuania Albinas Zananavičius participated in the General Affairs Council meeting in Brussels and heard a presentation on the priorities of the Romanian Presidency.

On January 8 new Defence Attaché of Montenegro in Lithuania Lieutenant Colonel Esmer Gašanin was accredited at a ceremony at the Ministry f National Defence. He replaced Montenegro’s first Defence Attaché in Lithuania Lieutenant Colonel Hajrudin Derekarac.

Romania takes over the rotating presidency of the Council on 1 January, for the first time since joining the EU in 2007. Romanian MEPs told us what they are expecting.

On 4 January, the Vice-Minister of Foreign Affairs of Lithuania Neris Germanas met with the Ambassador of Japan to Lithuania Shiro Yamasaki, who presented the opportunity to implement new cooperation projects in the fields of energy, transport, and life sciences.

“The NATO Air Policing Mission is not only a proof of allied solidarity. It should also be a part of the air defence mission in order to have stability, stronger deterrence, and swift response to security threats in the region,” Minister of National Defence Raimundas Karoblis said during a hand over-take over ceremony of the NATO Air Policing Mission in the Baltic states on January 3.

The euro, Europe's common currency, turns 20 on 1 January 2019.

Lithuanian President Dalia Grybauskaite has signed the new version of the Law on Referendum, defining referendum organization procedures and allowing more polling places abroad, into law, said the presidential press service.

On December 20 the Parliament of the Republic of Lithuania approved the new 10-year Plan for National Defence System Development which will be in force instead of the one approved in 2014 and made completely irrelevant by the changed regional security environment and increased defence budget. The new program not only sets out the goals, objectives, and priorities for the National Defence System, defines key means to achieve the said objectives, but also sets out deadlines concerning the objectives, the desired results, and their assessment criteria.

During a visit to Brussels on December 18 Vice Minister of National Defence Edvinas Kerza discussed European Union initiatives in cyber security area with Director General of the Directorate General of Communication, Networks, Content and Technology (DG CONNECT) at the European Commission. It was the second meeting of Vice Minister and DG CONNECT representatives in the time span of the past several months.

The Seimas ratified the Agreement between the Government of the Republic of Lithuania and the Government of the United States of America for Cooperation in Science, Technology and Innovation, which was signed in Vilnius on 25 June 2018.