Baltic States – CIS, EU – Baltic States, Forum, Lithuania, Transport

"The Strategy for the Baltic Sea Region is a good instrument to work on the improvement of environmental conditions in the region, addressing the development of transport infrastructure and interconnections, as well as taking care of other challenges in the area of transport," Lithuanian Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs Meilunas said. According to the Foreign Deputy Minister, transport goes beyond borders and implementation of the regionally important transport projects is not possible without engagement of our Eastern neighbors – Russia and Belarus. "In this regard, the Northern Dimension Partnership on Transport and Logistics is a very important instrument of external EU Baltic Sea strategy transport policy," Lithuanian Foreign Deputy Minister Meilunas said.

Lithuania, as the Chair of the Steering Committee, is actively engaged in the establishment of the Secretariat of Transport and Logistics Partnership. "We expect that the establishment of the secretariat, as well as the appointment of governing personnel, would be finalized during the next week's meetings in Helsinki. This will enable transport sector to use a new regional instrument – Northern Dimension Transport and Logistics Partnership," Foreign Deputy Minister Meilunas said. Deputy Minister of the Ministry of Transport and Communications of Lithuania Arunas Staras and State Secretary of the Swedish Ministry of Enterprise, Energy and Communications Carl von der Esch also welcomed the participants of the conference.

Lithuania has chaired the Northern Dimension Partnership on Transport and Logistics since 4 March of this year. Originally launched in 1997 at the initiative of the Government of Finland and the European Commission, the Northern Dimension aims at highlighting the EU's strategic interests in Northern Europe and at strengthening the cooperation between the countries of the Baltic Sea region and Russia. The Northern Dimension covers the EU member states, Russia, Norway and Iceland. The initiative provides a common platform for a more intensive development of cooperation in the Baltic Sea region, including North-West Russia and the Kaliningrad region. The Northern Dimension includes partnerships in various areas. The Partnership on Transport and Logistics is set up to implement infrastructure projects in the countries that participate in the Northern Dimension initiative.

The annual progress conference on the EU Strategy for the Baltic Sea Region in Transport Priority Area was co-organized by the Lithuanian Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Ministry of Transport and Communications.

The conference is attended by representatives from the transport sector in Poland, Lithuania, Finland, Sweden and Germany, members of regional organizations, representatives from the Directorate-General for Mobility and Transport (DG MOVE) and from the Directorate-General for Regional Policy (DG REGIO) of the European Commission, academics, representatives from the Baltic seaports. Belarusian representatives were also invited aiming to expand regional cooperation.