President Dalia Grybauskaitė met with Georgian President Giorgi Margvelashvili who arrived on an official visit to Lithuania to mark the start of visa free travels to the European Union and to thank the Lithuanian people for their support to Georgia.

On 28 March in Washington, D.C., the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Lithuania Linas Linkevičius, together with the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Estonia Sven Mikser and Latvia’s Foreign Minister Edgars Rinkēvičs, met with the United States Secretary of State Rex Tillerson.

President Dalia Grybauskaitė congratulated the people of Georgia with the introduction of visa free travel to the European Union.

A debate on security issues with the German and French interior ministers and visits by Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas and London Mayor Sadiq Khan are on the agenda of this week. In addition the UK is expected to formally start the process to withdraw from the EU by triggering article 50, while committees vote on measures to stop tax evasion by multinationals as well as on a mid-term revision of the EU's long-term budget.

The European Commission, on behalf of the European Union, has today renewed its strong support for the Organisation for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) Special Monitoring Mission (SMM) in Ukraine, under its recently extended mandate, for the full implementation of the Minsk agreements.

‘Lithuania believes in Georgia’s European future. We have acquired best practice during the EU accession process and we are ready to share it with Georgia,’ said Viktoras Pranckietis, Speaker of the Seimas, at his meeting with Irakli Kobakhidze, Chairman of the Georgian Parliament, and at a follow-up press conference. Mr Pranckietis is currently on his working visit to Georgia in the framework of a meeting of Speakers of NB8 Parliaments.

“Establishment of the Light Infantry Brigade Aukštaitija is a big day for the Lithuanian Armed Forces and for national defence. Developments and changes in geopolitical situation of the recent years demonstrate that freedom and independence can not be taken for granted any longer. Lithuania needs a capable Armed Forces, therefore I wish Aukštaitija to grow and strengthen, so that you are able to defence our independence on land, at sea, in the air, in cyberspace and information space,” Minister of National Defence Raimundas Karoblis said at the ceremony of bestowing an organisational flag on the new unit.

President Dalia Grybauskaitė is leaving on a working visit to Rome tomorrow, March 24, to participate in the events marking the 60 anniversary of the European Union and to meet with Pope Francis.

On March 23-24 Chief of Staff of the Federal Republic of Germany General Volker Wieker is conducting a formal visit in Lithuania.

The Council discussed the implementation of country-specific recommendations under the 'European Semester', focusing on the reform experiences in this area in the member states. This gave rise to an exchange of views on how these experiences have impacted on the business environment.