EU – Baltic States, Legislation, Lithuania, Society

Dalia Grybauskaite and Sergio Mattarella. Rome, 14.07.2015. Photo: lrp.lt

Grybauskaite met with Italian President Sergio Mattarella on Tuesday and reiterated Lithuania's resolve to take part in refugee resettlement programme. According to the head of state, Lithuania's concrete commitments and the number of refugees to be accepted were not discussed with the president of Italy.

"We are indeed helping to take the pressure and burden off Italy, Greece, Malta and all countries of Southern Europe," Grybauskaite told journalists in Milan.

According to Grybauskaite, resettling illegal immigrants from Greece and Italy to other European Union (EU) member states is only a temporary solution of the issue, whereas passive sharing of refugees will only promote their greater influx to Europe. The president says that African countries realise that fundamental problems of immigration from North Africa must be first of all solved in those countries and not in the EU.

"We are indeed being observed. Europe is being observed. I have confirmation from ambassadors of some African countries that if Europe continues to solve issues so passively, then immigration and the will enter Europe will only grow," said Grybauskaite.

The informal council of EU interior ministers held in early July decided that member states will share 20,000 refugees from third countries. In two years Lithuania will accept 85 of them. Meanwhile, on 20 July the ministers will negotiate on 40,000 Syrian and Eritrean immigrants who are now in Italy and Greece.

Prime Minister Algirdas Butkevicius has mentioned earlier that Lithuania will likely have to accept over 250 refugees.