On December 6 Minister of Defence of the Kingdom of the Netherlands Ank Bijleveld-Schouten on a visit in Lithuania and Minister of National Defence Raimundas Karoblis discussed the cooperation of their countries in the framework of the Permanent Structured Cooperation (PESCO) in defence area, where Lithuania proposes means for simplifying movement of forces in Europe and also strengthening response to cyber-attacks by creating rapid response groups.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Lithuania has allocated EUR 50,000 in humanitarian aid to Ukraine. EUR 25,000 in humanitarian assistance to help Ukraine will be transferred to the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) and another EUR 25,000 will be channelled through the International Organization for Migration. The aim is to support humanitarian response to help people affected by the conflict in Ukraine, responding to the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs’ appeal of 28 November for US$ 146,7 million or 72 per cent of the required funds for the implementation of the Ukraine Humanitarian Response Plan that has been reviewed in 2017.

MEPs will this week deal with issues such as youth employment, tighter cash controls, people living with a disability and the situation in Hungary.

On November 29 the Government of the Republic of Lithuania adopted a resolution to hand over to the Ministry of Defence of Ukraine on a nonreimbursable basis its assets by proprietary rights used by the Lithuanian Armed Forces by entrustment rights. On the basis of the resolution, Ukraine’s Ministry of Defence will be given weapons and ammunition that the Lithuanian Armed Forces used before becoming a member of NATO and do not coincide with the calibres used in NATO.

On the margins of the ongoing African Union - European Union summit in Abidjan, Ivory Coast, the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Lithuania Linas Linkevičius and the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Somalia Yusuf Garaad Omar on 30 November signed a Joint Communiqué on the establishment of diplomatic relations between the two countries.

The European Commission has presented proposals for the future of the Union’s agricultural policy. Read our interview with Czesław Siekierski, chair of Parliament’s agriculture committee.

President Dalia Grybauskaitė met with President Guðni Thorlacius Jóhannesson of Iceland to discuss relations between Lithuania and Iceland in the areas of economics, business, science and culture as well as cooperation in NATO and deepening Nordic-Baltic relations.

“Belgium’s joining the NATO enhanced Forward Presence Battalion in Lithuania is probably the most pronounced defence cooperation event of Lithuania and Belgium from historical perspective. It demonstrates Belgium’s understanding of the threats and security challenges in our region,” Minister Raimundas Karoblis said at a meeting with Minister of Defence of the Kingdom of Belgium Steven Vandeput in Vilnius on November 24.

The Prime Minister has attended the meeting of the Heads of Government of China and Central and Eastern European States in Hungary. The Prime Minister highlighted Lithuania’s interest in continuous development of the EU-Chinese relations, especially in the sphere of transport and logistics.

MEPs vote on the EU's budget for next year, discuss plans to establish a court to settle investment disputes and meet the journalists who revealed the Paradise papers.