An “effective and comprehensive European whistle-blower protection programme” should be proposed “immediately” by the EU Commission, urged the Budgetary Control Committee on Monday.

On 9 January 2017, Viktoras Pranckietis, Speaker of the Seimas, had a meeting with Alexander Udaltsov, Ambassador of the Russian Federation. The meeting discussed relevant issues related to the Lithuanian–Russian relations, namely, the role of Russia in the investigation of the January 13 case, nuclear safety and situation in Ukraine.

The position of Estonia in the classification of countries of the United Nations has not changed and hence no changes have taken place related to the Estonian candidacy for a non-permanent seat of the UN Security Council.

Three parliamentary committees question commissioner Günther Oettinger this week to assess his suitability for his new portfolio of budget and human resources. In addition the civil liberties looks at the current state of play regarding refugees in Europe, while the legal affairs committee votes on the first-ever EU rules for robotics and artificial intelligence.

On January 4 Minister of National Defence Raimundas Karoblis discussed cooperation between Lithuania and Sweden and security situation in the Baltic region at a meeting with Ambassador of Sweden HE Maria Christina Lundqvist.

From fighting terrorism to tackling the migration crisis: MEPs will be dealing with many significant challenges over the next six months. They will also be dealing with issues such as tax evasion and climate change. Read on for an overview of the main legislative proposals coming up.

An informal Snow Meeting will bring together Lithuanian and foreign security policy experts for the tenth time to discuss the main challenges facing the transatlantic community today and responses to them.

Lithuania will appoint a special ambassador for coordination of institutional actions over the Astravyets Nuclear Power Plant under construction in Belarus close to the Lithuanian border.

Malta has taken over the rotating presidency of the EU Council from Slovakia. This means that for the next six months the small island state plays a key role in setting the agenda, finding compromises and addressing a range of challenges such as the migration crisis and the expected start of the Brexit negotiations. We asked Maltese MEPs what their hopes and expectations were for their country's firs- ever presidency of the EU Council.

On Thursday, 29 December 2016, Viktoras Pranckietis, Speaker of the Seimas, met with the delegation of the United States Congress led by Republican Senator John McCain.