Jean-Claude Juncker, president of the European Commission, gave his first State of the Union speech in plenary on Wednesday morning, focusing on migration and the situation in Greece. MEPs also supported a emergency scheme for relocating asylum seekers from Italy and Greece to other member states and welcomed the Commission's new proposals for dealing with the growing influx of refugees. They also approved a ban on cloning farm animals and a stricter ban on seal products.

On 10 September, the Minister of Foreign Affairs Minister of Lithuania Linas Linkevičius met with the new Ambassador of Latvia Einars Semanis. The officials discussed the bilateral relationship between Lithuania and Latvia, laying special emphasis on cultural ties and the creation of a common information space.

In response to European Commission's (EC) proposal for Lithuania to accommodate additional 780 refugees, Prime Minister Algirdas Butkevičius has said that Lithuania understands the extent of the burden weighing on the shoulders of the entire Europe and the need for solidarity in sharing the responsibility with the rest of the Community.

On 8 September 2015, Julius Sabatauskas, Chair of the Committee on Legal Affairs; Stasys Šedbaras, Deputy Chair of the Committee; and Vilija Aleknaitė Abramikienė, Member of the Committee, had a meeting with the delegation of judges from the Supreme Court of Ukraine. The delegation was led by Yaroslav Romaniuk, President of the Supreme Court of Ukraine. The meeting was also attended by Rimvydas Norkus, President of the Supreme Court of the Republic of Lithuania, and Virgilijus Valančius, Team Leader of the EU Project "Support to Justice Sector Reforms in Ukraine".

"The first priority today is and must be tackling the refugee crisis," said European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker during the 2015 State of the Union debate at the European Parliament on Wednesday 9 September. "The EU is facing migration, the economic crisis and wars in its neighbourhood. We have to contribute to a solution to these challenges," said EP President Martin Schulz, EP's President in his opening remarks.

President Dalia Grybauskaitė met with the President of the Supreme Court of Ukraine, Yaroslav Romaniuk, and the President of the Supreme Court of Lithuania, Rimvydas Norkus, to discuss the ongoing constitutional and judicial reforms in Ukraine. Representatives from Ukrainian courts, currently visiting Lithuania, are interested in our country's judicial system, the principles governing the operation of courts and Lithuania's experience in carrying out reforms aimed at improving judicial activities.

Addressing the Fourth World Conference of Speakers of Parliament at the United Nations Headquarters in New York, Loreta Graužinienė, Speaker of the Seimas, underlined the importance of national parliaments in dealing with peace and democracy issues worldwide seeking to contribute to positive changes.

European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker will discuss the challenges facing Europe on 9 September from 9.00 CET. It will be his first State of the European Union speech since Parliament elected him to the post following the EU elections in May 2014. It has been a testing time for Europe with lacklustre economic growth, high debt and unemployment levels and a serious refugee crisis. Find out what leading MEPs expect from the address and follow our live coverage on Wednesday.

The EU's budget for next year will be decided over the coming months. Starting this week parliamentary committees adopts their opinions on the budget, followed by the budget committee drafting its recommendation to MEPs. Meanwhile the Council will present its position during next week's plenary.

President Dalia Grybauskaitė will meet with NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg at the Presidential Palace on Thursday, September 3 at 10:15 a.m. Following their bilateral meeting, at 11:00 a.m, the President and the General Secretary will inaugurate a NATO Force Integration Unit at the Joint Headquarters of Lithuanian Armed Forces.