On 27 December, Lithuanian diplomats and Ambassadors of Belgium, Estonia, France, Finland, Sweden, Germany, as well as the United States, Canada and representatives of the EU mission in Kyiv visited the bashed Ukrainian journalist Tetyana Chornovol in hospital and met with her spouse.

"Lithuania is so proud of its first Presidency of the Council of the EU that it would gladly undertake this mission for the second time in a row. As we like to joke among ourselves, if not for Lithuania, Croatia would not have become the 28th EU Member State on 1 July; the Orange Revolution would not have started in Ukraine and no other EU minister would have dared to ban menthol cigarettes across the EU as Vytenis Andriukaitis, Lithuanian Minister of Health has done," Gediminas Kirkilas, Deputy Speaker of the Seimas and Chair of the Committee on European Affairs has told EU Ambassadors during a solemn lunch dedicated to mark the end of the Lithuanian Presidency. He stressed that, among other things, Lithuania's pride in its first smooth Presidency could be testified by Lithuanian citizens' appreciation of living in a democratic state and being a part of the EU; Lithuanian people have already got used to the life within the European Union.

At least one of the 30 crew members of the 'Arctic Sunrise' have walked out of the Russian prosecutor's office with charges dropped in an amnesty, Greenpeace said in a statement.

At its final meeting under the Lithuanian Presidency to the Council of the EU on December 20 in Brussels, the Permanent Representatives Committee (COREPER II) has agreed to grant the citizens of the Republic of Moldova with visa-free travels to the EU. The final adoption of the decision by the EU Council and the European Parliament is expected early next year.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs strongly condemns the desecration of the Lithuanian state flag by two Polish citizens in Vilnius. We express our deep regret over this deplorable act of hooliganism.

On 20 December, the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Lithuania Linas Linkevičius met with the new Russian Ambassador to Lithuania Alexander Udaltsov to discuss bilateral relations and cooperation between the European Union and Russia.

President Dalia Grybauskaitė, currently on a working visit to Brussels, together with the heads of state or government of the 27 EU member states reviewed the economic situation in the European Union, discussed ways to promote Europe's economic growth and further steps to ensure financial stability in the Community.

President Dalia Grybauskaitė presented the results of Lithuania's Presidency of the EU Council to European leaders. She underlined that Lithuania stood at the helm of the European Union at a very special time.

President Dalia Grybauskaitė is attending this year's last European Council summit where European leaders are discussing - after a five-year break - security and defence issues. The EU heads of state and government were for the first time addressed by NATO's Secretary General Anders Fogh Rasmussen.

EU leaders meet in Brussels on 19-20 December 2013 to have a thematic debate on defence policy. Other subjects for discussion will be economic issues, migration and external relations.