On May 28, Ambassador of Lithuania to Russia Remigijus Motuzas presented his credential letters to the President of Russia Vladimir Putin.

Millions of people are on the run in places such as Syria and Nigeria due to the rise of violent extremism, many of them receiving essential aid from the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC). Its president Peter Maurer was in the European Parliament to meet the foreign affairs committee on 26 May and President Martin Schulz on 27 May. We talked to him to find out what life is like in these crisis-hit areas and how Europe could help to make a difference.

President Dalia Grybauskaitė attended the ceremony of unfurling the symbolic flags of Lithuania and Georgia to mark Georgia's Independence Day. Welcoming the participants of the ceremony at the Cathedral Square in Vilnius, the President underlined that Lithuania strongly supported the people of Georgia in building a European state.

The Parliament is updating its position on the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP), outlining what issues are important to MEPs. The international trade committee, which is the committee in charge, will on Thursday decide on a draft report, providing guidelines to the current negotiations. MEPs will then vote on it during the June plenary. The European Commission conducts the talks on behalf of the EU, but do you know what role the Parliament plays? Read on to find out.

President Dalia Grybauskaitė extended congratulations to President-elect Andrzej Duda of the Republic of Poland.

Andrzej Sebastian Duda is the new President of Poland. He is a lawyer and a Member of the European Parliament. Duda was the official candidate of the Law and Justice party for the office of the President of Poland in the 2015 Polish presidential elections.

Parliament passed three resolutions on Thursday, calling for Zimbabwean human rights activist Itai Dzarana to be found immediately; the release of all political prisoners in Swaziland; protection for Rohingya asylum seekers and action against human trafficking in Thailand.

On May 22, the United Nations Security Council adopted a resolution, submitted by Lithuania, on small arms and light weapons, underlining the suffering they caused to civilian.

EU importers of tin, tantalum, tungsten and gold for manufacturing consumer goods need to be certified by the EU to ensure that they do not fuel conflicts and human rights abuses in conflict areas, say MEPs in their position on a draft law adopted on Wednesday by 402 votes to 118, with 171 abstentions.

On the final day of his visit to Kazakhstan, Prime Minister Algirdas Butkevičius has met with President of Kazakhstan Nursultan Nazarbayev. The meeting has talked over development of bilateral economic relations as well as existing agreements and opportunities, including the designation of the Sun Container Train as the official carrier of Expo 2017.