During the 34th session of the UN Human Rights Council on 27 February, the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Lithuania Linas Linkevičius met with the President of the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) Peter Maurer. In the meeting, Lithuania’s Foreign Minister voiced Lithuania’s support to the ICRC’s activities in areas of armed conflict, particularly in Ukraine, Syria, and in the regions in Georgia - Abkhazia and South Ossetia.

The rights of EU citizens living in the UK, access to medicine and visa reciprocity with the US will be dealt with during this week's plenary session in Brussels on Wednesday on Thursday. In addition committees discuss the reform of asylum legislation while the inquiry committee investigating the car emissions scandal presents its findings and recommendations.

The Seimas adopted the amendments to the Law on Fundamentals of Protection of the Rights of the Child (draft No XIIIP-113(3)) to prohibit all forms of violence against children, including corporal punishment. The legislative amendments were adopted by 116 votes in favour, no votes against and no abstentions.

Amid the discussions in Lithuania on ways to halt the construction of the Astravyets Nuclear Power Plant (INPP) in Belarus, Lithuania's Energy Minister Zygimantas Vaiciunas addressed the issue in Latvia on Wednesday.

On 22 February in Washington, D.C., the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Lithuania Linas Linkevičius met with the Executive Director of The McCain Institute for International Leadership Kurt Volker, the Senior Director of The McCain Institute for Human Right and Democracy David Kramer, the former Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for Human Rights and Humanitarian Affairs Paula Dobriansky, and the President of the Project on Transitional Democracies Bruce Jackson, and participated in a round table discussion at Woodrow Wilson Centre’s Kennan Institute.

Lithuania's Special Investigation Service (SIS) has brought suspicions of abuse of office against Panevezys District Mayor Povilas Zagunis of the ruling Lithuanian Farmers and Greens Union (LFGU) as part of a probe into the local authority's public procurement activities.

The European Commission yesterday published its annual analysis of the economic and social situation in the Member States, including an assessment of remaining imbalances.

Dalia Grybauskaitė met with U.S. Senator Richard Durbin. The President and the Senator discussed challenges to regional and transatlantic security, defense cooperation between Lithuania and the United States and strengthening the transatlantic bond.

Two new Vice Ministers of National Defence Giedrimas Jeglinskas and Edvinas Kerza come into office as of February 20. They will be in charge of procurement and acquisition, and cyber security, hybrid resilience, and budget shaping and implementation at the national defence system.

President Dalia Grybauskaitė met with U.S. Vice President Mike Pence in Munich. Latvian and Estonian presidents also participated in the meeting where views were exchanged on cooperation with the United States and on strengthening the transatlantic bond.