On behalf of the Lithuanian people and on her own behalf, President Dalia Grybauskaitė extended congratulations to Estonian President Toomas Hendrik Ilves on the 98th anniversary of Estonia's Declaration of Independence.

The French Minister of State for European Affairs Harlem Désir is visiting Vilnius on 22-23 February. In the meeting, the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Lithuania Linas Linkevičius stressed that Lithuania highly appreciated its good bilateral relationship with the strategic partner – France – and was interested in further strengthening cooperation, particularly in the fields of security and defence, economy, energy, education and science.

On 18-19 February, a delegation led by the Palestinian Assistant Minister on European Affairs Amal Jadou was visiting Lithuania. The Lithuanian-Palestinian political consultations were held in Vilnius on 19 February to discuss prospects for enhanced cooperation in the political, economic, agricultural, educational, cultural fields and the tourism industry, the security situation in the Middle East and the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

The people of Uganda went to the polls in large numbers in Presidential and Parliamentary elections on 18 February, showing determination to exercise their civic rights and cast their vote.

The UK and the other EU countries would be better off staying together, Martin Schulz told heads of state and government at the start of a European Council on 18-19 February dedicated to migration and the UK's demands of a reform of its EU membership. The EP President said: "In the globalised 21st century we need the UK more than ever and we are convinced that the UK will be better off as part of the European Union."

On 16 February, the 3rd Honorary Consulate of Lithuania in India was officially opened in Kolkata, India, on the occasion of the Day of the Restoration of the State of Lithuania. The Honorary Consulate is headed by a businessman Arvind Kumar Sukhani. On 15 February, an Honorary Consulate of Lithuania was also opened in Lohja, Finland, and will be headed by the Managing Director of Savo Consortium for Education Esa Karvinen.

President Dalia Grybauskaitė Dalia Grybauskaitė extended sincere condolences to President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan of Turkey over the terror attack in Ankara, which took the lives of dozens of people and left many injured.

The nuclear agreement with Iran marked the end of a long period of sanctions and gave a new impetus to Iran-EU relations. On Tuesday, Iranian Foreign Minister Javad Zarif appeared before Parliament's foreign affairs committee to discuss the future of EU-Iran relations as well as the situation in the Middle East. "Iran is open to work with Europe to reduce the concerns and tensions in the region," he said, but added: "We both need to gain each other's trust."

On 14 February in Algeria, the Ministries of Foreign Affairs of Lithuania and Algeria held their first political consultations and signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) on the establishment of a mechanism for bilateral consultations. The Ministries expect, within the framework of this document, to hold regular consultations on bilateral and international issues.

Members of national parliaments from across Europe join MEPs in Brussels to discuss EU-wide budgetary coordination, while British Prime Minister David Cameron is to discuss his proposals for a reform of the UK's EU membership terms with Parliament's leadership. Iran's Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif meets MEPs on Tuesday in the wake of sanctions against his country being lifted. Meanwhile international specialists debate the Zika virus epidemic with MEPs on Wednesday.