POLITICS
Lithuanian and Ukrainian Foreign Ministers: Russia’s false accusations are causing big concern
On 11 August, the Ministers of Foreign Affairs of Lithuania and Ukraine – Linas Linkevičius and Pavlo Klimkin – had a telephone conversation to discuss the situation in eastern Ukraine and yesterday’s accusations by Russia that Ukraine had allegedly attempted to invade Crimea four days before and had allegedly killed two Russian officers. Ukraine’s Foreign Minister Klimkin claimed that these accusations by Russia did not correspond with reality and that Ukrainian services were currently seeking to gather all the information and trying to figure out the situation. “My counterpart noted that Ukraine was closely monitoring the situation and was ready to respond in a timely manner in order to prevent these Russian provocations from deteriorating into a more serious conflict. The Ukrainian people have suffered the most from Russia’s ongoing aggression against Ukraine. Therefore, Kyiv is ready to do whatever it takes to finally end the Russian-backed military action, information attacks and provocations in eastern Ukraine,” said Linkevičius. The two Foreign Ministers adopted a common position that not only the people of Ukraine were distressed, but also the entire international community was very worried about the allegations fabricated by Russia. “The provocation methods and accusations by Russia threaten the Normandy format and constitute a challenge for the international effort to end external aggression and military action in eastern Ukraine. The international community should respond very seriously to such fabricated accusations and prevent any further provocations by Russia, if such are planned,” said Lithuania’s Foreign Minister.
Head of Lithuania’s diplomacy welcomes vessels of Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force in Klaipėda
On 8 August at the Klaipėda State Seaport, the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Lithuania Linas Linkevičius welcomed the Training Squadron vessels of the Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force (JMSDF): Kashima, Asagiri and Setoyuki. The ships visited the country to mark the 25th anniversary of the re-establishment of diplomatic relations between Lithuania and Japan. “Lithuania and Japan established their diplomatic relations in 1922, nearly a century ago, and the natural partnership between our countries is based on their love of freedom and respect for common values: human rights, democracy, and international law. The values that unite us and other countries – the so-called “Arc of Democracy” – join also Japan and Lithuania, which are distant only geographically,” said the Lithuanian Foreign Minister. “A special place in our shared history is taken by the Japanese diplomat, the Righteous Among the Nations – Chiune Sugihara,” noted the Lithuanian Foreign Minister. “The visit of the vessels of the Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force to Lithuania is historic. This is a great event not only for Lithuania, but also for the whole of Europe,” said Linkevičius. More.
ECONOMY
Interested parties invited to Lithuanian Airports Concession Investor Conference
This autumn, Lithuanian Airports is to hold its first Investor Conference where potential investors and interested parties will be introduced to the concept and structure of the Lithuanian Airports Concession. The event, to be held at Vilnius Airport on 21 September, will be hosted by the Lithuanian Ministry of Transport and Lithuanian Airports. Lithuanian Airports operates a network of three international airports: Vilnius, Kaunas and Palanga. The concessionaire will be expected to increase the connectivity of all three airports and to improve their infrastructure through financing strategic development projects and improving airport services. More.
In the 1st half of 2016 Lithuanian exports to India grow by 77,4%
In the first half of 2016, as compared to the same period last year, Lithuania’s exports to India grew by 77,4% and amounted to EUR 17.3m, Statistics Lithuania reports. In 2015, Lithuanian exports to India amounted to EUR 50.9m, while Lithuanian imports from India stood at EUR 51.7m. India was Lithuania’s 38th largest export partner. More.
SOCIETY AND CULTURE:
Vilnius University student team aims to ‘programme’ intestinal bacteria
Vilnius University (VU) students develop the method to programme intestinal bacteria, which will facilitate the dietary solution for children with congenital disease phenylketonuria (PKU). Young scientists from VU will represent Lithuania for the second time at the prestigious synthetic biology competition iGEM (International Genetically Engineered Machine). iGEMcontest is an annual international event in synthetic biology. The teams from all over the world, consisting of a variety of disciplines, all summer are developing genetically designed systems. The debut of the Lithuanian team at the iGEM competition last year was an absolute success - the team received the golden award for the bacterial system ColiClock. More.
Center of Baltic cultures, studies opens in India
A Center of Baltic Culture and Studies has been opened in a private Dev Sanskriti University in Haridwar, northern India. The inauguration ceremony was attended by Governor of Uttarakhand Krishna Kant Paul and the ambassadors of Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia. “The Lithuanian language is currently studied at 47 academic centers across the world. Today we are adding one more member to this distinguished family, which is the first of its kind in South and South East Asia,” Lithuanian Ambassador Laimonas Talat-Kelpša said at the opening ceremony. He also noted a close similarity between Lithuanian and Sanskrit, presenting the library with a small Lithuanian-Sanskrit dictionary containing 108 identical words in both languages. More.
Lithuania puts old Jewish cemetery under state protection
An old Jewish cemetery in Vilnius has been registered among cultural objects protected by the state, under a decree signed by Lithuania‘s Culture Minister Šarunas Birutis on 5 August. The document declares that the cemetery on Olandų Street exhibits valuable artistic, historic, and memorial elements, BNS reports. Cultural values which are preserved by the state are subjected to stricter protection, financing, and maintenance conditions. Data provided by the Jewish Community of Lithuania indicates that this Jewish cemetery was used from 1828 to 1940.
Ministry of Transport and Communications launches development of electric vehicle infrastructure
Together with the Lithuanian Road Administration, the Ministry of Transport and Communications has drawn up a project for the development of the electric vehicle infrastructure along the national main roads and in cities. The objective of this project is to promote the use of electric vehicles and to reduce the environmental effect of transport. “During the coming years, as of 2017, we plan to build more than 150 electric vehicle charging stations in the cities and over 30 – along the main roads”, says Vice-Minister for Transport and Communications Saulius Girdauskas. “This ambitious project to build new charging stations has been encouraged by the growing popularity of electric vehicles and the need to reduce environmental pollution. Our goal is user-friendly infrastructure making it possible to comfortably charge electric vehicles anywhere in Lithuania”. More.
Information based on BNS, Invest Lithuania, MFA, MoD, Ministry of Transport and Communications, Ministry of Culture, Vilnius University, Vilnius Tourist Information Centre
