With the passing of Shimon Peres, the President said, the world has lost a great modern statesman who worked to transcend religious and ethnic divisions, to create peace and concord between nations.
As he served in different leading positions, Shimon Peres actively pursued negotiations with the Palestinians. It was largely because of his efforts as Israeli Foreign Minister that the Declaration of Principles was signed in the White House in Washington on 13 September 1993, which was designed as the foundation stone of the peace process in the Middle East. In 1994 Shimon Peres won the Nobel Peace Prize together with Israeli Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin and Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat for the historic accords.
President Dalia Grybauskaitė underlined that there had always existed a special bond between Shimon Peres and Lithuania. Born only 100 kilometers from Vilnius, Shimon Peres was granted honorary Vilnius citizenship in 2013. His roots go back to the vibrant community of Litvaks which gave the world many famous artists, scientists and Nobel laureates.
Three years ago, Shimon Peres came on a state visit to Lithuania. During his meetings and discussions with President Dalia Grybauskaitė, the Israeli President highlighted the many similarities existing between the two nations. He emphasized that we should search for the things that united our people and streamline bilateral relations towards the future, focusing on innovation, biotechnologies and modern medicine.
World nations will be represented at the highest level at the state funeral of Shimon Peres. U.S. President Barack Obama, presidential candidate Hillary Clinton, French President François Hollande, German President Joachim Gauck, Prince Charles of Great Britain, the prime minister of Australia and Canada, heads of EU institutions, and other international dignitaries will pay their respects to the former Israeli leader.
